China imported 28,875 tonnes (on a gross-weight basis) tin ores and concentrates in November. This is an all-time high, which exceeded the previous record import month (January 2014) by 9,909t. Almost all of the November imports were sourced from Myanmar. The total tin ores and concentrate imports were 153,229t from January to November, up 88% year-on-year. We estimate that tin contained was around 26,000t. The big imports of ores and concentrate eased the tightness of raw material supply in China and boosted the increase of Chinese refined tin production. China Non-ferrous Metal Industry Association (CNIA) reported Chinese refined tin production was up 21% to 167,795t in January to November.
In contrast, imports of tin ingot in China were only 283t in November, down by 66% year on year. This was close to the lowest monthly imports (February 2014) since 2008. The export of refined tin was also very little after September, because the price differential between China and LME has not been not profitable for export.
