Malaysia's tin output falls

Malaysia's tin output falls

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP): Malaysia's tin production fell 45 percent in the seven months to July over the same period last year while exports rose by four percent, the statistics department said yesterday.

The country produced 588 tons of tin in July, up 11 percent from a month earlier but 36 percent lower than July a year ago, the department said in its monthly tin report.

This brought total output for the first seven months to 3,828 tons, a fall of 45 percent over the corresponding period of last year, the department said.

Despite the fall in output, the country's export of tin rose four percent to 21,598 tons during the period.

Domestic total consumption was also up three percent to 2,996 tons, it said.

Despite shrinking output, prices continued their decline as the industry was plagued by poor demand.

On the Kuala Lumpur Tin Market (KLTM) yesterday, prices closed four sen lower at 13.65 ringgit per kilogram, after a surge last week.