LME lead was closed for Easter, and SHFE lead was closed for the Qingming Festival [SMM Lead Morning Brief]

SMM, April 7:

The LME market was closed from April 3 to April 6 for Good Friday and the Easter holiday; due to the Qingming Festival holiday, SHFE lead did not conduct night session trading on the evening of Friday, April 3; normal trading resumed from Tuesday, April 7.

Supply side, although social inventory of lead ingots in five regions across China continued to decline, maintenance and production resumptions at primary lead smelters proceeded in parallel in April. In addition, secondary lead capacity in northern China increased, finished product inventories at plants increased slightly, and imported lead continued to flow in, leaving spot supply generally ample. Demand side, the lead-acid battery sector entered the traditional off-season, downstream purchase willingness remained cautious, spot transactions were weak, and consumption was absent at stages. Moreover, the risk of post-holiday inventory buildup in social inventory remained high, making resistance in SHFE lead increasingly evident. Lead prices were expected to maintain a fluctuating trend, with limited upside room.