Tight supplies improve spot zinc trades in Shanghai 

SHANGHAI, Jul 16 (SMM) – Spot zinc traded briskly in Shanghai on the morning of Tuesday July 16 as traders purchased actively amid tight supplies for the delivery of long-term contracts. 

Sellers hiked offers to a premium of 80-100 yuan/mt, against the SHFE front-month August contract, in the second morning session, with trades mostly at a premium of 80-90 yuan/mt. These compared with premiums of 50-70 yuan/mt in the previous morning.  

At noon on Tuesday July 16, traded prices of #0 zinc stood at 19,300-19,320 yuan/mt, with that of the higher-grade Shuangyan and Chihong brands at 19,310-19,340 yuan/mt.  

In the northern Chinese market of Tianjin, however, trades weakened from the previous day as cautious sentiment deterred downstream consumers. Deals mostly occurred for cheaper products. 

Offers of #0 zinc common brands stood at a premium of 70-120 yuan/mt over the SHFE August contract at noon of Tuesday July 16, with prices at 19,280-19,350 yuan/mt. The Tianjin-Shanghai price spread narrowed to flat, from a premium of 40 yuan/mt on Monday. 

The SHFE August contract pared overnight gains and closed the morning of Tuesday July 16 at 19,235 yuan/mt, down 15 yuan/mt from that time on Monday.