Articles Tagged "inventories"

Espionage Tales And Long Positions

Long tin positions are a major bugbear for the tin industry. Committee members at the London Metal Exchange are angry at the LME's lack of action on the large scale long tin positions. Market concerns centre on the September-December 2009 contracts and the amount of available metal stored in LME tin inventories, after a large number of positions were built up last week. And in other spy tales, an Australian executive with mining giant Rio Tinto was being held in China as a suspected spy.

Active Interest Could Spur Rally

Commodities like tin, rubber and steel could be heading for a short-term rally in the near future bolstered by active buying interest from institutional and fund managers on most major world commodities, dealers said. Manufacturers worldwide were seen building up inventories to take advantage of the current weak US dollar, traders said. The weak greenback makes commodities attractive as a hedge against inflation.

Tin Set To Recover

Unlike most of the other base metals, there is no growing tin surplus. Inventories held at the London Metal Exchange now sit at 8,820 tonnes, against a 52-week high of 11,430 tonnes. The potential is that a rebound in Chinese demand, coupled with the closing of mines in Indonesia, could trigger supply shortages.