Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said China’s GDP may exceed 7.5% through the first nine months while attending the East Asia Summit. Li noted that China’s economy has presented stronger growth during the past few months bolstered by recovery in real economy. China’s National Bureau of Statistics will release China’s economic data for the third quarter on October 18, and the Q3 economic growth is expected to rise to 7.8%, above the 7.5% in Q2. 

 

Producers of ignition lead-acid battery reported stronger demand for lead alloy since September given the upswing in battery sales. Secondary lead producers, including Hubei Chukai Metallurgy and Baoding Anjian Nonferrous Metals, saw higher operating rates, and large ignition battery makers all staged rapid output growth. The average operating rate at secondary lead smelters climbed by 18.55 percentage points in September, up from August’s 37.60% to 56.15%, according to survey of Shanghai Metals Market (SMM).