Positive story on tin in today's "The Australian". Noteworthy is author's view that tin price of US$20,000/t "could be around the corner"
Things are stirring in the ASX-listed tin space, as might be suspected given the 40 per cent price improvement in the metal since the start of the year.
But no one is getting too excited just yet given the price increase to $US18,195 a tonne is off a horror low in January of $US13,085 a tonne.
A more meaningful price performance guide is that tin has increased some 13 per cent from the 2015 average of $US16,070 a tonne. And even then, prices need to get to $US20,000-plus for the buzz factor to really kick in.
That sort of price level could be around the corner.
Pushing things along for tin so far this year are tighter supply factors from Chinese restocking, China’s environmental crackdown, Indonesia’s ban on the export of unprocessed ores, a slowdown in Myanmar production, and the lack of new mine developments.
On top of all that — and a new theme for the tin market — is the increasing recognition that tin is deeply involved in all facets of the global energy revolution. It is no longer just about solder, tin-plate, pewter and electroplating.
Tin is found in lead-acid batteries, which are undergoing something of a renaissance thanks to the sealed unit type that is powering China’s love affair with electric bicycles and mopeds, and it is found in lithium-ion batteries, which the world has decided will be the first technology to electrify the world’s transport industry.
It is also found in the technologies — including supercapacitors — that are being developed to eventually take over over from lithium-ion batteries, as well as in a range grid-sized non-battery storage technologies to make renewables more efficient, as well as clean and alternative fuel technologies.
Where that all ends up in terms of tin demand is anyone’s guess. But it has been good enough in this market to get some of the other players in the energy revolution — the graphite, lithium, manganese and cobalt stocks — buzzing.
