China refined tin imports in May were 1,315 tonnes, down by 16% compared to May last year, but up by 10% compared with the previous month. Imports of tin from Indonesia rebounded following a pick-up in its overall export levels during the month. China imported 7,639t refined tin in the five months to May, down by 32% on the same period of 2012. However, this is still a big volume considering there has been almost no arbitrage space between LME and Chinese domestic prices to encourage general imports in the first five month of this year. In contrast there was a big differential between China and LME in the same time of last year.
After a rise in exports in March and April, refined tin exports from China in May were very low, at only 29t. The accelerated appreciation of RMB also makes exports more difficult.
China imported 2,972t (gross weight) of tin concentrates in May, down by 6% on the previous month and 33% year-on-year.
