Lead social inventories halted 7 weeks of slide amid weak battery demand

Published: Apr 17, 2020 17:05

Save

Consumption in the lead-acid battery market weakened, and this drove lead smelters to lower their production targets. Consumers continued to shift demand to secondary materials as the rising supply of secondary lead expanded discounts of secondary refined lead to as much as 100 yuan/mt against the average prices of SMM 1# lead on an ex-work basis.

SHANGHAI, Apr 17 (SMM) – Social inventories of lead ingots in China held roughly flat from a week ago at 10,000 mt as of April 17, halting the decline over the previous seven consecutive weeks, showed SMM data.

Finished products inventories at most refined lead smelters were not high as smelters focused on delivering under long-term contracts. This saw limited amounts of lead cargoes shipped from smelters to social warehouses this week.

SMM expects further increase in secondary lead supply to send overall social inventories of lead ingot slightly higher next week. The prospects for the consumption of lead-acid batteries remain bleak.

Inventory data Lead

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

1 hour ago

Data: SHFE, DCE market movement (Apr 07)

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on 07 Apr , 2026

1 hour ago

2 hours ago

Recovery Stalled, Supply-Demand Divergence: Secondary Lead Output Rebounded in March — Will Growth Hold in April?

In Q1 2026, China's secondary lead market navigated through turbulence amid holiday effects and industry difficulties. Following a sharp production decline of over 140,000 mt in February, the market saw a post-holiday recovery rebound in March, but the recovery fell short of expectations, with the industry mired in the dual constraints of "profit pressure and tight raw material supply." Looking ahead to April, although large smelters are expected to resume production in a concentrated manner……

2 hours ago

A Lead Smelter in Southwest China Resumed Production After Maintenance, Producing 200 mt of Lead Ingots Daily

[Maintenance Recovery at a Lead Smelter in Southwest China] According to SMM, a lead smelter in Southwest China, which had been under maintenance since early February, resumed lead ingot production today, with a daily output of approximately 200 mt. SMM will continue to monitor any subsequent changes.

2 hours ago