Malaysia's tin price fell $165 on Friday after factoring in an overnight drop in London but strong Japanese demand helped stave off excessive pressure, dealers said.
The spot price of the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) closed on Friday at $9,110 a tonne after a transaction of 66 tonnes.
It had settled at $9,275 a tonne on Thursday, on a volume of 82 tonnes.
Overnight, on the London Metal Exchange, tin closed $350 lower at $8,450 a tonne.
"It was a choppy market after what happened on the LME," said a KLTM trader. "But the Japanese were still buying and that's what saved the price from falling too much."
Japanese bidders mounted initial bids for 36 tonnes on the KLTM on Friday. But sellers offered up to 102 tonnes after seeing the big drop in the LME price.
The two sides eventually matched positions at 66 tonnes.
Traders said the heftier KLTM price compared to the LME meant that the premium for shipping a tonne of Malaysian tin to Europe, including freight and other costs, now stood at $885 a tonne from $700 a day ago.