* Japanese rubber futures slid further on Friday, ending in
their
first weekly drop in three weeks, as traders assessed a slowing
growth rate in China and U.S. rate-hike fears.
* Osaka Exchange's rubber contract for August delivery finished 2.4 yen, or 1.1%, lower at 219.2 yen ($1.60)
per kg.
* For the week, the benchmark OSE contract slumped about
4.6%.
* The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange for
May
delivery fell 260 yuan to finish at 11,990 yuan
($1,721.09) per tonne.
* Japan's benchmark Nikkei share average closed
1.67%
lower.
* "This week the futures market saw prices slide
largely
due to possible U.S. rate hikes," said Farah Miller, chief
executive officer of Helixtap Technologies, an independent
rubber-focused data company.
* "On the physical front, producers were not so willing to lower prices to the same degree."
* "However, a stronger USD against many of the producing countries' currencies would allow some breathing room for their margins amidst lower prices," she added.
* Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has warned of higher
and
potentially faster rate hikes, saying the U.S. central bank was
wrong in initially thinking inflation was "transitory" and was
surprised by the strength of the labour market.
* Pulling down traders' sentiment, China's annual consumer
inflation slowed to the lowest rate in a year in February as
consumers remained cautious despite the easing of stringent
pandemic restrictions late last year.
* Similarly, Japan's economy grew a tad slower than
initially
estimated in the fourth quarter, revised government data showed
on Thursday.
* The Japanese yen weakened 0.39% to 136.67 per
dollar, as
of 0705 GMT.
* A weaker currency makes yen-denominated assets more
affordable
when purchased in other currencies.
* Falling bank stocks drove Asian markets lower on Friday,
while
bonds rallied and expectations for U.S. interest rate rises were
reduced after a surprise capital raising at a Silicon Valley
startup lender unleashed fears of broader banking-system stress.
* The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange's
SICOM
platform for April delivery last traded at 131.8 U.S.
cents per kg, down 2.1%.
($1 = 136.6400 yen)
($1 = 6.9665 yuan)
(Reporting by Carman Chew; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
For other physical rubber prices in Thailand, click on . For more details on Indonesian and Malaysian prices click on and .
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