Tin ended flat in Malaysian trade on Friday, with dealers expecting it to stay at around $8,000 a tonne until the London market reopens after the Easter holidays. Spot tin on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market closed at $8,230 a tonne, unchanged from Thursday. But the traded volume dwindled to 59 tonnes from 120 tonnes the previous day. Tin on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose $25 on Thursday to close at $8,200 a tonne.
The London market, which often lends direction to prices in Kuala Lumpur, will be closed from Friday through on Monday for the Easter weekend.
"I don't think there's going to be much movement on our market until the LME reopens," said a tin trader in the north Malaysian Island of Penang. "The spot price should stay at around $8,000 or so."
Initial offers for Malaysian tin stood at 59 tonnes on Friday's market one tonne shy of the volume bid by Japanese and Malaysian buyers.
The difference of $25 between the Kuala Lumpur and London closing prices narrowed accordingly the premium for a tonne of Malaysian tin destined for European markets.
The premium calculated using freight, insurance and other financial costs stood at $250 a tonne on Friday compared with $275 on Thursday.