Poorer demand grows primary lead inventories on week

SHANGHAI, Nov 2 (SMM) – Social inventories of primary lead across Shanghai and Guangdong extended their increase by some 1,500 mt over the week ended November 2 to stand at 16,200 mt, SMM data showed.

Downstream consumption of lead-acid batteries cooled, and this slowed purchases by battery plants. Sellers kept premiums firm when the SHFE lead contracts traded robustly this week, which further depressed spot transactions. 

In the second half of the week, downstream demand was partly transferred to secondary refined lead, as discounts of the product widened to 300-200 yuan/mt over average price of SMM #1 primary lead. This also accounted for the increase in stocks of primary lead on the week.