Millions of tons of metals stashed in shadow warehouses

Banks, hedge funds, commodity merchants and others are stashing tens of millions of tons of aluminum, copper, nickel and zinc in a hidden system of warehouses that span the globe. These facilities are known to some in the industry as "shadow warehouses" because they are unregulated and don't disclose their holdings. They operate outside the London Metal Exchange system of warehouses, the traditional home for these metals. The amount dwarfs the 5.5 million tons of aluminum in the LME-licensed warehouses, based on LME figures as of Tuesday.

via Business News - Yahoo Finance http://finance.yahoo.com/news/millions-tons-metals-stashed-shadow-231400800.html