Tokyo Futures Mostly Up On Supply Concerns

Most Tokyo rubber futures were higher on Monday (Mar 28) as supply concerns provided firm support to the market.
FUNDAMENTALS
The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for September delivery, which debuted in Monday's (Mar 28) session, was at 428 yen per kg as of 0028 GMT, down 8 yen or 1.8 percent from the open.
The previous benchmark for August delivery was up 3.6 yen at 433.2 yen.
Tokyo rubber futures fell on Friday (Mar 25) on technically driven selling as players liquidated contracts after prices failed to break above key resistance at 440 yen. Tight supplies, however, limited the losses, dealers said.
The most active Shanghai rubber contract for May delivery fell 175 yuan to settle at 36,450 yuan ($5,558) per kg on Friday (Mar 25).
Deliveries against the March rubber futures contract on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange jumped 50 percent from February to 466 lots or 2,330 tonnes, the exchange said on Friday (Mar 25), the highest since 516 lots delivered in January 2007.
U.S. crude futures remained steady in early Asian trade on Monday (Mar 28) as fighting persisted in Libya and political unrest continued unabated in Syria, Yemen and Bahrain, supporting oil supply concerns.
The euro started the week on the backfoot following news of a German state election rout for Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, but expectations of an imminent rate hike by the European Central Bank looked set to limit its downside.
(Reuters, March 28, 2011)