TOKYO, April 5 (Reuters) - Key TOCOM rubber futures rose almost 2 percent on Friday, supported by the Bank of Japan's powerful stimulus policies unveiled a day earlier aimed at jump-starting the world's third-biggest economy. FUNDAMENTALS * The key Tokyo Commodity Exchange rubber contract for September delivery traded 4.8 yen or 1.9 percent higher at 263.5 yen per kg as of 0015 GMT. * The TOCOM market is heading for a weekly fall of about 4 percent. * On Thursday, the September contract settled down 3 yen at 258.7 yen after the BOJ's new stimulus policies helped lift the contract from a low of 252 yen, the weakest since Nov. 19, 2012. * New Governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Thursday committed the BOJ to open-ended asset buying and said the monetary base would nearly double to 270 trillion yen by the end of 2014, a dose of shock therapy officials hope will end two decades of stagnation. * An unexpected jump in U.S. weekly jobless claims to a four-month high on Thursday raised questions about the labor market's recovery a day ahead of the U.S. government's widely watched monthly jobs report. A report on Wednesday showed U.S. companies hired at the slowest pace in five months in March. * For the top stories in rubber market and other news, click , or MARKET NEWS * In China, markets are closed for a public holiday on Friday and resume trading on Monday. * The dollar rose to 96.80 yen in early Asian trade on Friday, the highest level since August, 2009. * Japan's Nikkei average rose more than 4 percent in early trade on Friday. * Brent crude prices hit a five-month low near $105 a barrel on Thursday, but the benchmark crude pared losses late in New York as the euro strengthened. DATA EVENTS * The following data is expected on Friday: (Time in GMT) 0900 Euro zone Retail sales 1000 Germany Industrial orders 1230 U.S.
Nonfarm payrolls 1230 U.S.
Unemployment rate 1230 U.S.
International trade (Reporting by Risa Maeda; Editing by Ed Davies)
