The London Metal Exchange three-month tin price closed up $275 per tonne at $17,150 per tonne on Thursday October 17 on news that China's Yunnan Tin Co will cease all smelting operations at its Ausmet plant in Gejiu, Yunnan province, on October 21.
Yunnan Tin Co, the world's largest tin smelter, produced 78,000 tonnes of refined tin in 2018 and remains the world's largest refined tin producer by some 45,000 tonnes per year, despite efforts by the Indonesian government to increase production at state-owned PT Timah. While weak demand from the soldering industry and lower tin prices have precipitated a 10% forecast production cut from the tin giant for 2019, the scheduled maintenance at the Ausmet operation of no more than 50 days has given tin...