China's metal financing probe rattles lenders

[SHANGHAI] Global trading houses and banks were scrambling to check on their exposure to a probe into metal financing at China's Qingdao port, as concerns grow that a crackdown on commodity financing could hit trade in the world's top metal buyer.

The investigation at the world's seventh largest port is looking into whether single cargoes of metal were used multiple times to obtain financing, according to industry sources.

This means different banks and trading houses were holding separate titles for the same metal.