Tin ended flat in Malaysian trade on Thursday as buyers remained supportive but refrained from taking major positions after a slight rise in the London price of the metal. Spot tin on the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market closed at $7,150 a tonne, unchanged from Wednesday.
The traded volume, however, rose to 70 tonnes from 25.
"The price would have gone up had the LME been bullish," said a trader, referring to the London Metals Exchange, where tin futures are traded.
Third-month tin on the LME rose $50 on Wednesday to close at $7,250 a tonne. The London market often lends direction to the price in Malaysia.
In Kuala Lumpur, Japanese, European and local buyers put in cumulative bids for 70 tonnes and sellers matched the volume at the opening itself.
Dealers said 30 tonnes each were consumed by the Europeans and Japanese, who are traditionally big users of tin for soldering purposes in their electronics industry. The balance 10 tonnes went to Malaysian interests.
The flat close in London versus the $50 rise in London narrowed accordingly the premium of shipping a tonne of Malaysian tin to Europe.