KUALA LUMPUR: Tin price on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) is likely to consolidate this week with steady demand expected from foreign buyers, after hitting a 15-month high on Friday, dealers said.The price had surged to S$18,200 per tonne, the highest since September 2008, following sharp gains on the London Metal Exchange (LME) amid positive signs of a global economic recovery.
“We expect demand for the metal to continue strong as investors digest China’s move to tighten its monetary policy to achieve a solid growth,” one of the dealers said.
China, the world’s largest scrap metal importer, has raised its bank reserves requirement ratio to curb inflation threats.
The price of industrial metals including tin came under pressure early this week due to a knee-jerk reaction to the reserve ratio announcement, but it later rebounded.
“China is the biggest growing economy in world. The country has it own strong momentum and this would indirectly help boost demand for metals,” the dealer said.
He said the tin price could hover between US$18,200 and US$19,250 per tonne next week with Japanese and European continuing to support the market.
On a Friday-to-Friday basis, the KLTM tin price jumped US$700 to US$18,200 per tonne from US$17,500 per tonne.
The metal’s price on LME also surged by US$950 to US$18,450 per tonne from US$17,500 per tonne.
The weekly turnover on KLTM was lower at 268 tonnes compared with 303 tonnes a week earlier.
The price differential between KLTM and LME, based on a formula that includes freight, insurance and other financial costs, stood at a US$75 premium per tonne against US$325 per tonne previously. — Bernama