LONDON/KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Smelting Corp Bhd (MSC), one of the world's largest refined tin producers, is delaying shipments to customers around the world due to a shortage of concentrate, sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.MSC declined to comment on the matter when contacted by Reuters.Tin is a vital ingredient for electronic components for mobile devices, electric vehicles, robotics, renewable energy and energy storage industries. "MSC is short of concentrate and has pushed some delivery schedules out by four weeks or so," another source said. "The problem has been brewing for weeks. "(It) may well be the reason for the big backwardation in the tin market for the past two weeks," the trader said.The premium or backwardation for the cash over the three-month tin contract is around $130 a tonne, up from $60 a tonne in the middle of April. It touched $340 a tonne last month, the highest since September 2015.

Source: The Star June 10, 2019 03:11 UTC