Tin price jumps after Alphamin temporarily ceases operations at Congo mine

Tin prices jumped to eight-month highs on Thursday after Alphamin Resources said it would temporarily cease operations at its Bisie tin mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo due to unrest in North Kivu province.

Prices of the soldering metal on the London Metal Exchange (LME) were up 3.3% at $34,530 a metric ton at 1401 GMT after touching $34,815 a ton, the highest since July.

Alphamin produced more than 17,000 tons of the metal used to make semiconductors last year or more than 4% of global total supplies estimated at around 380,000 tons.

“This decision was made after insurgent militant groups have recently advanced westward in the direction of the mines location in the DRC,” Alphamin said in a release.

“All operational mining personnel are being evacuated from the mine site with only essential personnel to remain for the care, maintenance and security of the property.”

Analysts at Macquarie in a note published this week estimated the global tin market was already set to see a shortfall of 13,000 tons this year.

(By Pratima Desai; Editing by Tomasz Janowski and Elaine Hardcastle)

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