How is the China tin price set?

China's tin benchmark is the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) tin contract, settled in Chinese yuan per tonne. We convert it to US dollars per tonne with the live USD/CNY rate so it can be compared with the LME tin price.

What drives China's tin demand?

More than half of all tin goes into solder for electronics, so SHFE tin closely follows the global semiconductor and consumer-electronics cycle. Tinplate, chemicals, and batteries make up most of the rest.

Why is tin a volatile, thinly traded market?

Tin is the smallest of the major base metals by traded volume, and supply is concentrated in a handful of producers in China, Indonesia, and Myanmar. Small supply disruptions can move the price sharply.

How does the China tin price compare with the LME?

SHFE and LME tin share the same demand drivers but differ on the import arbitrage, VAT, and the supply of ore from Myanmar into Chinese smelters. The spread is a read on domestic refined-tin availability.

China Tin Price Today

Live China tin price from the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE), shown in US dollars and Chinese yuan per tonne.

SHFE Settlement (USD)

per tonne

SHFE Settlement (CNY)

per tonne

USD / CNY rate

7.20

¥ per $1

China Tin Price (SHFE)

Shanghai Futures Exchange settlement in US dollars ($/tonne)

How China prices tin

China is the world's largest tin producer and consumer, mostly for electronics solder, and the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) tin contract is its domestic benchmark. SHFE quotes tin in Chinese yuan per tonne; we convert it to US dollars so you can compare China's tin price with the LME.

Why China's tin price matters

Tin demand is dominated by solder for electronics, so SHFE tin is sensitive to the global semiconductor and consumer-electronics cycle. It is the smallest and often the most thinly traded SHFE base-metal contract.

Reading the chart in yuan and dollars

SHFE quotes tin in Chinese yuan per tonne (¥/t). Use the currency toggle above the chart to switch between the native yuan price and the US-dollar equivalent, which we compute from the live USD/CNY exchange rate. Viewing both makes it easy to separate a real move in the tin price from a move that is really just the yuan strengthening or weakening against the dollar. For warehouse inventory and settlement detail, see our SHFE tin page.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is the China tin price set?: China's tin benchmark is the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) tin contract, settled in Chinese yuan per tonne. We convert it to US dollars per tonne with the live USD/CNY rate so it can be compared with the LME tin price.
What drives China's tin demand?: More than half of all tin goes into solder for electronics, so SHFE tin closely follows the global semiconductor and consumer-electronics cycle. Tinplate, chemicals, and batteries make up most of the rest.
Why is tin a volatile, thinly traded market?: Tin is the smallest of the major base metals by traded volume, and supply is concentrated in a handful of producers in China, Indonesia, and Myanmar. Small supply disruptions can move the price sharply.
How does the China tin price compare with the LME?: SHFE and LME tin share the same demand drivers but differ on the import arbitrage, VAT, and the supply of ore from Myanmar into Chinese smelters. The spread is a read on domestic refined-tin availability.