Tokyo Futures Rise On Higher Oil, Share Prices

Tokyo rubber futures climbed early on Thursday (May 26) as a rebound in oil prices to two-week highs and rises in share prices brightened market sentiment.
FUNDAMENTALS
The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for November delivery, which debuted on Thursday (May 26), stood at at 389.1 yen per kg as of 0040 GMT.
The previous benchmark contract for October delivery was up 9.3 yen, or 2.4 percent, at 395.1 yen, after settling up 2.6 percent on Wednesday at 385.8 yen ($4.709) per kg. That was the highest since May 19 and above resistance of 385 yen.
The May TOCOM rubber futures contract expired at 408.0 yen per kg on Wednesday (May 25), down 9.7 percent from the April contract's 451.6 yen expiry price.
Deliveries against the May rubber contract fell 21 percent from April, to 241 lots or 1,205 tonnes, the exchange said on Wednesday (May 25).
The most active Shanghai rubber contract for September delivery rose 680 yuan to finish at 32,295 yuan ($4,969.555) per tonne on Wednesday (May 25).
Oil prices rose 2 percent on Wednesday (May 25), climbing to two-week highs as an unexpected drop in U.S. distillate inventories trumped a sharp rise in gasoline stocks and as a softer dollar supported fresh commodities buying.
The dollar rose 0.1 percent to 81.98 yen against the yen. The euro came under further pressure against the dollar as investors fretted about Greece's ability to repay its debts.
MARKET NEWS
Delphi Automotive filed to raise up to $100 million in an initial public offering, the U.S. auto supplier said in a securities filing on Wednesday (May 25), less than two years after emerging from bankruptcy.
Electric car maker Tesla Motors Inc plans to raise up to $214 million through a share offering to help fund development of its Model X SUV, and said its chief executive would buy a portion of those shares.
The Nikkei stock average gained on Thursday (May 26), bouncing off a two-month closing low hit the previous day, helped by a rise in Wall Street shares and commodity prices, though market players said it was too early to say risk reduction has run its course.
U.S. stocks ended a three-day losing streak on Wednesday (May 25) as recent underperformers led a thinly traded rally that wasn't seen as strong enough to overcome worries about waning global demand.
(Reuters, May 26, 2011)