pt timah unable to meet tin supply contracts, page-3

Here is a good read mm,

Chinese tin output falls and trimming local surplus this year

Sunday, 10 Oct 2010Reuters reported that China's tin supply has fallen since September as major smelters have cut production, trimming a surplus expected this year.

Mr Ran Jun an analyst at state backed research firm Antaike said that "This year would still have a surplus, but the scale could be smaller than previously expected."

Expected production falls in the world's two top producers, China and Indonesia with the latter hit by heavy rains on the main producing islands of Bangka and Belitung and depleting reserves, pushed up world tin prices to a record high of USD 26,790.

In August, Antaike's Mr Ran had estimated China's tin production to rise and exceed the firm's earlier expected 129,000 tonnes this year due to high prices creating oversupply. But in September, four top Chinese tin smelters cut production.

China's top tin producer, Yunnan Tin has shut production in Gejiu city in southwestern Yunnan province since September 25 for a month long maintenance. The plan was scheduled according to the conditions of its furnace.

He said that the firm has an output plan of 60,000 tonnes this year but that annual output may fall below the target if the ongoing repairs take more than one month.

A trader at the smelter said that in the southwestern province of Guangxi, Jinyi Smelting had halted production for one month in September on reduced power supplies. The firm had resumed two thirds of the production this month and would restart the rest soon. Jinyi may produce less than 4,000 tonnes of tin this year.

One of the manager said that but reduced power supplies had little impact on tin production at China Tin Group in Guangxi. The power cut lasted for a little more than 10 days last month and that affected our zinc production. That did not affect our tin production much since it needs far less power than zinc. The firm has a tin output plan of more than 14,000 tonnes this year.

Traders at Chengfeng and Jinyi said that the firms had received more buying enquiries after returning from a week long break for the National Day holiday because buyers expected Chinese prices to follow the LME hike.

(Sourced from Reuters)

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