CORRECTED-RUBBER-Japanese futures fall on stronger yen, lower oil prices

* Japanese rubber futures edged lower on Monday, hit by a strengthening yen and falling oil prices.
* The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for August delivery was down 3.8 yen, or 1.7%, at 226 yen ($1.94) per kg as of 0207 GMT.
* The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange (SHFE) for May delivery was down 165 yuan, or 1.3%, at 12,440 yuan ($1,799.23) per tonne.
* Rubber inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange inched 0.4% higher from a week earlier, the exchange said on Friday.
* Japan's benchmark Nikkei share average opened up 0.91%.
* The Japanese yen strengthened 0.04% to 135.83 per dollar.
* A stronger yen makes yen-denominated assets less affordable when purchased in other currencies.
* Oil prices opened lower, after China set a modest target for economic growth this year of around 5%, lower than market expectations of 5.5% growth in the world's second-largest oil consumer.
* Lower oil prices incentivise manufacturers to shift to synthetic rubber derived from oil, hindering the natural rubber market.
* Still, Asian shares edged up, while bond markets held their breath ahead of an update on the U.S. rate outlook from the world's most powerful central banker.
* There was some disappointment that Beijing chose to lowball its growth outlook with a target of 5%, rather than the 5.5%-plus favoured by the market, but the recent run of actual data has been strong enough to keep investors optimistic.
* The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange's SICOM platform for April delivery last traded at 139.10 U.S. cents per kg, down 1.6%. ($1 = 135.8300 yen) ($1 = 6.91378 yuan)
(Reporting by Carman Chew; Editing by Rashmi Aich)