Malaysian tin closed flat on Thursday as buyers shied from committing big on the market in fear of near-term weakness despite recovering prices in London, dealers said.
Spot tin on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) ended at $8,940 a tonne after a transaction of 125 tonnes. Tin on the London Metal Exchange rose $100 on Wednesday to close at $8,950 a tonne, recovering all of Monday's losses and adding a $50 gain since.
But KLTM investors were more cautious. "There's fear here that the market could take another hit in the near-term," said a local tin trader. "That probably explains the limited support."
For more than a week, the KLTM has remained below the psychologically-important $9,000 a tonne level after losing $400 on a single day during October 13's global sell-off in metals.
Dealers on the local market noted initial bids for 130 tonnes on Thursday from Japanese, European and local buyers, against offers totalling 125 tonnes.
The flat KLTM price versus the LME's rise narrowed the premium for shipping a tonne of Malaysian tin to Europe, after freight, insurance and other financial costs, to $225 from $325 on Wednesday.