Tin Prices

Tin prices rose over the last month due to supply woes. Prices averaged USD 25,644 per metric ton in April, which was up 6.9% from March’s price but was 40.4% lower than in the same month last year. On 28 April, tin traded at USD 26,398 per metric ton, which was 1.8% higher than on the same day of the previous month.

Prices increased in recent weeks chiefly due to supply concerns in Myanmar. In mid-April, the United Wa State Army—Myanmar’s largest ethnic armed organization—stated that from August onwards mining operations in Wa State would be suspended. Prices spiked immediately after the announcement, given that Myanmar is the third-largest producer worldwide and accounts for over three quarters of tin imports in China—the top consumer. The need to preemptively stock up likely boosted Chinese demand, despite that country’s manufacturing PMI swinging into contraction in April.