UPDATE 1-Shrinking supplies boost antimony to 14-yr high

powered by Sphere

Market News

Tech rally and oil's fall drive Wall Street's gains | Video

Oil falls from record high on China demand worries

AnnTaylor shares jump on raised forecast

More Business & Investing News...

 By Pratima Desai

 LONDON, Feb 11 (Reuters) - Antimony prices rallied to 14 year highs on Monday after unusually harsh winter weather in China, the world's largest producer of the minor metal, hit production and transport, traders said.

 Standard grade antimony ANT-LON rose to about $5,950 a tonne on the European spot market, the highest since 1994, traders said. Last week it was trading at around $5,850 a tonne.

 Prices of the metal used to fireproof fibres and plastics are up more than 6 percent since the middle of January and more than 50 percent since January 2007.

 "Antimony production is at a standstill, factories have closed down and transport is in crisis," a London-based trader said. "There's very little availability."

 More snow is forecast for China, which could hinder efforts to get the transport system working properly. That combined with predictions of floods after the snow is likely to severely restrict supplies to European consumers, traders said.

 Flooding was also the reason for the price surge in 1994, another London-based trader said.

 "Offers are now at $6,300 a tonne, some even at $6,400."

 China produces about 90,000 tonnes or 90 percent of the world's antimony, which is also used in the manufacture of paints, ceramics and enamels.

 Hunan province produces a large proportion of that total with one company Hunan Nonferrous Metals Corp (2626.HK: Quote, Profile, Research) responsible for about 40 percent of the country's output.

 Antimony prices jumped last July when the China shut down mines in the Hunan Province because of environmental concerns after swollen rivers washed away slag piles at unregulated mines.

 High grade antinomy ANT-HG-LON was trading at around $6,100 a tonne from $5,950 last week.

 (Reporting by Pratima Desai; Editing by Michael Roddy)