SHANGHAI, Oct. 16 (SMM) – In Shanghai tin market, spot tin prices were mainly between RMB 154,000-156,000/mt on Monday, lower than last Friday. Trading was still quiet. Since LME tin prices slumped last Friday and continued to fall on Monday, combined with the sluggish demand, spot prices followed a weak trend. Yunxi was traded at RMB 156,000/mt, and Yunheng was traded at RMB 155,000/mt, deals for Yunxiang and Nanshan were mainly done at RMB 154,000-154,500/mt.

SMM’s survey revealed that 70% market players believe tin prices should continue to fall this week to test RMB 150,000/mt, as LME tin prices moved lower toward the 30-day moving average, with technical indicators signifying a downtrend. This week, market will focus on the October ZEW Economic Sentiment Indicator for euro zone and Germany, the UK annualized CPI data for September. Market was not optimistic in general with expectations lower than previous data. The US dollar index showed a strong sign of rebounding, weighing on LME tin prices. Domestic tin market remained weak, and spot tin prices have been falling since last week, coupled with disappointing orders, buying interest downstream was rather low. Thus, these investors believe spot tin prices should fall further against the soft consumption.

30% investors are cautious believing spot tin prices will consolidate. Spot premiums over LME three-month tin price have remained high at USD 90/mt, and canceled warrants for LME tin hit 5,995 lots. Besides, the falling spot tin inventories indicated LME demand was relatively strong, and LME tin prices were still resilient to declines. LME tin prices are testing support at the 30-day moving average, and may struggle at USD 21,000/mt should prices find technical support. On Monday, supply to the market fell from the previous day, as some smelters were less willing to sell goods due to high costs, while others continued to cut production. Meanwhile, goods possessed by traders were mostly purchased at higher prices before the National Day holiday, so traders were also reluctant to move goods. Thus, limited supply is expected to offer support for low-end prices.