Social inventories of lead ingots expanded 1,900 mt over weekend

SHANGHAI, May 17 (SMM) – Social inventories of lead ingots across Shanghai, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Tianjin rose 1,900 mt from last Friday May 14 to 85,900 mt as of Monday May 17, an SMM survey showed. This was up 16,700 mt from last Monday May 10.

Lead supply extended gains as primary and secondary lead smelters resumed production, while consumption remained sluggish. In addition, as the SHFE 2105 lead contract was delivered today, cargoes were shipped to social warehouses.

Shipments from smelters to social warehouses are likely to slow down in the second half of the week as the delivery ends. If consumption remains poor, in-plant inventories are likely to build up.