Lead ingot social inventories up 14,200 mt on week

SHANGHAI, Jul 16 (SMM) - Social inventories of lead ingots across Shanghai, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Tianjin rose 14,200 mt from last Friday and increased 10,300 mt from July 12 to 157,700 mt as of July 16, hitting a new high since December 2014, an SMM survey showed.

SHFE 2107 lead contract was settled this week, and more goods were transferred to delivery warehouses, leading to the increase in social inventories. The storage capacity of CMST’s delivery warehouse was expanded from 20,000 mt to 40,000 mt in No.1 Lugang Sijing Branch Road, Lulugang Logistics Industrial Park, Beichen District, Tianjin, China. The production of primary and secondary lead will stay stable next week, while the consumption recovery will be limited. However, the holders’ deliveries of goods may slow down as the next settlement day is still far away. The increase in the lead ingot social inventories is expected to be slower, and the stocks may rise in some smelters.