The Indonesia Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (ICDX) has delayed for a second time the introduction of a physical tin contract to allow potential users more time to prepare, Bloomberg reported. Trading will start on 1 February instead of 12 January said Syahrul Sempurnajaya, head of the Commodity Futures Trading Regulatory Agency at the Trade Ministry. Initially, the new product had been scheduled to start last month.
“Representatives from some Japanese and Korean buyers have showed interest in joining, but they need more time to get approval from their head office,” Sempurnajaya said. The ICDX and the government will hold a meeting with 23 buyers on 12 January to provide details of the new contract, Rudy Irawan, a member of the tin-contract committee, said by telephone today. The committee groups producers, exchange executives and government officials. Irawan was formerly executive chairman of the Indonesia Tin Association. There are at least eight producers including PT Timah, the country’s largest tin miner, that have committed to trade the ICDX contract, Irawan and Sempurnajaya said.
In a separate report by Reuters, another trade ministry spokesperson contracdicted reports last week that the country may impose an export tax on tin in addition to the current 3% royalty. “The trade ministry has no plan to impose export tax on tin,” Sri Nastiti Budianti, export director for mining and industrial products at the trade ministry said. “Also, there is no proposal from (any) other ministry on the matter so far,” she added, without giving further details.
