The International Tin Association reports that four of the top ten refined tin producers in the world increased their production in 2018, including three of the top five.

The top five companies ranked the same as in 2017. However, there were significant changes outside the top five. Jiangxi Xinnanshan rose to No. 6 from the top 10 in 2017, while Vento, Tesaco and Metlo all dropped by one place compared with 2017. Guangxi Huaxi changed from 7th to 9th place in 2017. Gejiu ranks outside the top 10 for the first time since 2014.

Yunnan Tin Industry still maintains its position as the world’s largest refined tin producer by a large margin, and its output increased slightly in 2018. Yunxi’s reported output is 77,000 tons, including overseas processing. Private smelters in Indonesia are not included in this year’s rankings because they are not available for production information. It’s likely that the largest producer among them is not in the tenth place.

Tianma reported that its refined tin production increased by 11% in 2018 to about 33,400 tons (unaudited), the highest level since 2011. As far as we know, the increase in Tianma’s output is due to the increase in concentrate supply after the export of Indonesian private smelters was restricted in the fourth quarter of 2018. This year, Indonesia’s output will face greater uncertainty due to persistent export problems. However, we believe that Tianma’s output will grow slightly as a result of investing in a new smoking furnace and increasing capital expenditure for capacity expansion.

Mingsu’s production in Peru increased by 2% from 18,000 tons in 2017 to 18,300 tons (unaudited) last year, while its Brazilian subsidiary Tobacco’s refined tin production dropped by more than 1%. Peru’s output was relatively flat in Mingsu, mainly because of the contribution of the company’s new ore separation plant, which helped maintain production levels despite the decline in raw ore grade at the San Rafael mine. We believe that this situation will continue this year and expect stable production in Peru, Mingsu.

Finally, in Europe, although Metlo’s production declined by 4%, the total production of refined tin in Europe increased by 1% in 2018, reaching about 13,100 tons.