KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia Smelting Corporation Bhd’s (MSC) net profit for the first quarter ended March 31, 2022 jumped to RM64.34 million compared to RM22.12 million in the same period last year.

       Revenue rose 30.3 per cent to RM359.48 million from RM275.91 million previously, the group said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia today.

       "The improved performance was primarily on the back of positive movement in average tin prices, which increased by 80 per cent to RM180,006 from RM100,115 per tonne in the same quarter 2021,” it said.

       Its group chief executive officer Datuk Patrick Yong said that tin prices continued to trend upwards in the first quarter this year as a consequence of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

       "However, we are now seeing commodity prices, including tin, softening as fears over supply disruptions eased on the back of rising inventories. We expect tin prices to stabilise in the short to medium term, albeit at higher prices against pre-pandemic levels.

       "In the long run, we remain optimistic on the future prospects of tin. Demand is expected to outpace supply in line with increasing consumption of consumer electronics and rising tin application for various usages including solar photovoltaic installations and electric vehicles,” he said.

       Yong said its Pulau Indah smelting facility is running at 75 per cent capacity and is expected to achieve full capacity in 2022.

       "We look forward to higher extractive yields and operational efficiencies, along with lower operational and manpower costs upon full commissioning of the Pulau Indah plant. It is our plan to decommission the Butterworth plant in the next few years,” he added. - Bernama