Traders in Queue for Tin

Sept. 22 (ITRI) -- Currently more than 3,000 tonnes of tin is due to be shipped out of LME warehouses, but actual movements of metal have been quite slow. Total opening stocks in exchange warehouses on 20 September stood at 21,020 tonnes, of which 3,320 tonnes were cancelled warrants (ie waiting to be withdrawn). However most LME tin stocks are held in Singapore and Malaysia and there are reported to be long delays in moving metal out of the Johor warehouses in Malaysia.

The queues have been bemoaned by aluminium and zinc traders for some time, but the impact is now being felt in the tin market, Metal Bulletin reported. "This is a problem that should not be drifting over into the tin market," one physical trader told MB after he was told it would take six weeks to withdraw two containers from Johor. Nearly 98% of LME-listed tin stocks are held in Asian stores, and the exchange is commonly used as a source of metal by physical traders doing consumer business in the region.

The run on LME tin stocks is mainly related to strong demand from China, where the local physical market price remains at a very large premium to the LME price.