London 13/10/2016 - ISTIM Metals will soon add Port Klang in Malaysia to the list of its LME-approved warehouse locations while it continues to expand its global footprint, sources told Metal Bulletin.
Port Klang should be listed this month and possibly by next week, one source said on Thursday, October 13.
This would be its first warehouse in Asia after it entered the European market for the first time last month with an LME-listed warehouse in Liverpool.
ISTIM may also open LME-registered warehouses in other European locations - Rotterdam and Vlissingen are believed to be strong candidates - before the end of this year, several sources said, while one suggested South Korea could be its next target in 2017.
One source said ISTIM wanted to be able to offer a global service to its customers rather than build a massive LME footprint similar to the likes of Steinweg and Access World.
ISTIM declined to comment.
ISTIM currently has eight LME-listed warehouses including five in New Orleans and two in Detroit, which is where the firm's headquarters is based. The company was founded by Bill Whelan, who was the co-founder of Metro International Trade Services, which was sold to Goldman Sachs in 2010 for $550 million.
Whelan returned to the warehousing business after his three-year non-competitive agreement with Metro ended in 2011.
(Editing by Mark Shaw)