IN SHORT: Indonesia's ICDX prepares to launches tin, rubber contract

The Indonesia Commodity and Derivative Exchange (ICDX) hopes to launch tin futures by next year, its CEO said on Monday, in a bid to give producers in the world's top exporter of the base metal more control over prices. The ICDX launched a physical tin contract (INATIN) on February 1 which has so far attracted buyers mainly from Japan and South Korea, Chief Executive Officer Megain Widjaja told Reuters.
If that contract is successful, the exchange would then launch a tin futures contract. "Looking at the rate right now and the participation, we are very hopeful that we can get it by next year," Widjaja said at the Mining and Metals Summit in Jakarta. The government of Indonesia will soon adopt the INATIN contract instead of the London Metal Exchange's tin contract as a reference price for its export royalty charge, Widjaja added. The ICDX's palm oil contract is currently used by the Indonesian government to set its monthly palm export tax.
Indonesia's exports of tin, mainly used in soldering for electronics, rose about 4 percent to 96,019.76 tonnes last year. The government, which banned exports of tin ore since 2002, imposes a 3 percent royalty charge on all tin exports. The ICDX's physical tin contract is backed by state-owned PT Timah, the largest tin miner in the archipelago, which has delivered about 1,200 tonnes to ICDX-approved warehouses.