Malaysian tin rose $60 on Tuesday, edging closer to its next psychological barrier of $8,500 a tonne, as demand remained strong amid tight supplies.
The KLTM's spot price closed at $8,400 a tonne on a turnover of 75 tonnes. On Monday, the price stood at $8,340 on a volume of 76 tonnes. But the local market's premium to London narrowed as tin on the London Metal Exchange jumped $170 overnight.
LME tin closed at $8,270 a tonne from $8,100 a day. The Malaysian premium calculated using freight, insurance and other costs, eased to $345 from $455 on Monday, dealers said.
"We need to bring it down further if we want to attract Europeans back to this market," said a trader in Malaysia. A global shortage in tin supply has seen prices hitting multi-year highs on both the KLTM and LME in recent months. At Monday's close, tin stocks on the LME totalled 8,825 tonnes, down from 9,240 tonnes a day.