Nickel Advances to a Record in London After Inventories Slump By Brett Foley
Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Nickel rose to a record in London on speculation that supply may lag behind demand after stockpiles fell for the first day in 10. Tin gained to a 17-year high. London Metal Exchange-monitored inventories increased 36 metric tons to 4,398 tons, the LME said in a daily report. Stockpiles have dropped 34 percent this year and are equal to less than one day of global consumption. Demand for the metal is surging among stainless-steel makers. Stockpiles are ``critically low'', said Robin Bhar, a London-based metals analyst with UBS AG, which is a member of the LME. ``This volatile market is not for the faint-hearted.'' Nickel for delivery in three months on the LME advanced as much as $1,100, or 2.8 percent, to $39,900 a metric ton as of 1:41 p.m. local time, beating the previous record of $39,501 recorded on Feb. 15. Tin rose $200 to $13,400 a ton. Earlier, it gained as much as 1.9 percent to $13,450 a ton, the highest since at least 1989. Supplies will fall short of demand by about 30,000 tons in 2007 because of reduced output in Indonesia, according to a report published yesterday by U.K. consulting companies ITRI Ltd. and CRU. Tin miners have until Feb. 22 to register for the right to export the metal from Indonesia, the world's second-largest producer. The government plans to tighten export regulations and crack down on illegal mining. China is the biggest producer. Also on the LME, copper dropped $67 to $5,738 a ton, aluminum fell $24 to $2,756 and lead gained $35 to $1,815. Zinc declined $42 to $3,350. To contact the reporter on this story: Brett Foley in London at [EMAIL PROTECTED] . Last Updated: February 20, 2007 08:52 EST Ratman Now Everyone Can Trade Believe The Unbelievable,Dream The Impossible, Don't Take No for An Answer http://www.j-club.biz
