SHANGHAI, Jun 28 (SMM) – Licensed smelters of secondary lead across Anhui, Henan and Jiangsu provinces kept operating rates steady at lows this week in a slow market. 

An SMM survey showed that rates across the three areas averaged 47.1% in the week to June 28, flat from the previous week.

Licensed smelter Anhui Huabo will conclude maintenance and resume production on July 2 as scheduled. It also planned to double the output of its phase-two production lines into 1,200 mt/day, within 10 days after the recovery.  

Stable operation of the expanded phase-two capacity may close high-cost, phase-one production lines in the short term, SMM learned.

Secondary smelters saw narrower margins as slow consumption depressed prices of Shanghai lead, again below the 16,000 yuan/mt level. This drove them to demand lower prices of battery scrap, the feedstock to produce secondary lead. As of Friday June 28, prices of battery scrap edged down after held firm for nearly half a month, and this extended discounts of secondary refined lead. 

Supply of secondary lead showed limited signs of tightness despite environmental curbs in Henan. 

As of June 28, trades of secondary refined lead occurred at a discount of 150-200 yuan/mt, ex-works with taxes included, against the average price of SMM #1 lead. Offers by some producers that procure battery scrap as feedstock were down to a discount of 250 yuan/mt ex-works.