Boosted by stockpile sales - Johnson Matthey JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Supply of platinum from South Africa, the world's top source of the precious metal, will rise by 5 percent this year, with the sale of stocks countering lower output, a leading metal refiner said on Tuesday. The producer of four fifths of the world's platinum, will see supply rise by 210,000 ounces to 4.73 million ounces in 2009 mainly due to sales of the metal produced last year, but were unsold until this year, Johnson Matthey (JM) said in its Platinum 2009 Interim Review. Although three new mines have started up in South Africa, and a number of others have increased production, output of platinum concentrate will fall, but changes in refined stocks will ensure supplies will increase, JM said. Global supply of platinum, used in auto catalytic converters to remove pollutants from exhausts, and in jewellery, is seen rising 1.9 percent to 6.06 million ounces, revising some of the decline seen last year, JM said. Platinum production fell in South African due to shaft closures, accidents and strike action, mainly at Impala Platinum Holdings Ltd. (Implats), the world No. 2 producer of the metal which supplies 25 percent of the metal globally, from its South African and Zimbabwe mines. "The South African mining industry has again been hit by a range of problems," JM said in its report. "Underlying production of the metal will fall in South Africa due to shaft closures, accidents and strike action." JM said output at Impala will drop due to mine accidents and a two week strike, while bigger rival Anglo Platinum (Angloplat) , a unit of global miner Anglo American Plc, would see production fall after it shut some shafts. Read more...