LME Tin Hit a Record High Again, Spot Sales Stagnated

SHANGHAI, Mar 4 (SMM) – LME tin hit a record high again at $46,750/mt today, an increase of nearly 20% in the year. While the SHFE tin moved up slightly recently and fluctuated this morning. The most traded SHFE tin contract closed 0.25% higher at noon.

The average spot price of SMM 1# tin is 342,250 yuan/mt today, which is a record high in SMM statistics. Compared with the lowest average price on March 23, 2020, it has skyrocketed by 191%. The average spot price increased by 18% during the year, and the increase is slightly less significant than the futures prices.

According to SMM survey, the upstream smelters raised their quotations this morning and held firm to the prices. The discounts of non-deliverable tin brands shrank. The number of quotations stood stable in the morning. Some traders reported improvement of shipments, but the overall market performance was still weak. The downstream users purchased tin on rigid demand, and the higher prices suppressed the demand.

According to SMM analysis, the total amount of funds has not changed much in the tin market.

On fundamentals, the inventories at home and abroad stand stable, and the spot shipments are still stagnate. The goods of non-deliverable brands are generally sold at discounts.

To sum up, SMM believes that the supply and demand structure will extend, and the tin prices are likely to maintain the congestion at a high level.