* Japanese rubber futures rose for a sixth session on
Friday,
tracking Shanghai gains, but weaker crude prices and slow export
growth from Japan weighed on sentiment.
* The Osaka Exchange (OSE) rubber contract for September
delivery was up 0.2 yen, or 0.1%, at 213.0 yen ($1.59)
per kg, as of 0149 GMT.
* The benchmark contract has risen 1.5% so far this week, on
track
for a second straight weekly gain.
* The rubber contract on the Shanghai futures exchange
(SHFE) for
September delivery was up 90 yuan, or 0.8%, at 12,035
yuan ($1,749.76) per tonne.
* Japan's benchmark Nikkei average opened down
0.23%.
* Japan's export growth slowed in March, dragged down by a
drop in
China-bound shipments of cars and steel in a slide that
underscores concern about slackening global demand amid higher
interest rates and Western banking-sector jitters.
* Oil prices eased, extending losses from the two previous
days
and heading for a weekly decline, as softening U.S. economic
data and a rise in U.S. gasoline inventories raised concerns
about a recession and slower global oil demand.
* Lower oil prices incentivise manufacturers to shift
towards
synthetic rubber derived from oil, weighing on the natural
rubber market.
* Asian stocks slid towards their worst week in a
month-and-a-half, while bonds enjoyed their best bid in weeks as
U.S. data and earnings showed signs of weakness.
* The front-month rubber contract on Singapore Exchange's
SICOM
platform for May delivery last traded at 138.6 U.S.
cents per kg, up 0.1%.
($1 = 133.9200 yen)
($1 = 6.8781 yuan)
(Reporting by Carman Chew; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
