Metal Industries Basically Rremain Normal against Spreading COVID-19 Pandemic

SHANGHAI, Aug 3 (SMM) - COVID-19 pandemic once again swept the world recently. The new cases surged in US, Europe, and south-east Asia due to the spread of Delta variant.

Pandemic was also spreading in China. On August 1, 31 province (including autonomous regions and municipalities) and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps reported 98 new confirmed cases, including 43 imported cases and 55 local cases.

Under the prevention and controls of pandemic, 22 expressway toll station have been closed in Nanjing, Taizhou, Yangzhou, Nantong, and Suzhou. According to SMM survey, the delivery and sales of some metal companies has been affected to varying degrees. The companies in some regions reported that the sport delivery may be delayed for lack of trucks in the impeded logistics.

Copper industry:

According to SMM survey, the simmering pandemic in Nanjing did not cause production suspension in the copper industry chain in Jiangsu province. However, due to the closure of the 22 expressway toll stations in Nanjing, Taizhou, Yangzhou, Nantong, and Suzhou, the delivery and sales were affected by the hindered logistics, which caused production cuts or inventory backlog in some companies.

Some companies will slow down the production pace by adjusting the speed of the production lines or taking turns to conduct maintenance, which may slightly limit the output in August. Jiangsu is the largest copper consumer province in China, with an annual production capacity of about 4.6 million mt of refined copper rods and an annual output of about 3 million mt of refined copper rods. The wire and cable companies in Yixing area can consume about 150 mt of copper per year.

Aluminium industry:

The upstream raw material production of petroleum coke and prebaked anode stood stable, but the logistics were impeded in many regions. According to some companies in Zhengzhou, all trucks that entered or left the city should go through nucleic acid test, which led to the shortage of trucks for aluminium and silicon products. Traders needed extra 1-2 days to find the trucks, while some drivers refused to go to Jiangsu.

Lead industry:

The pandemic mainly affected the transportation of lead ingot and concentrate, and the production was little impacted. Some expressways in Henan and Hunan have been inspected for pandemic prevention, on which the traffic of the vehicles from other places were restricted.

Henan kept out the trucks from medium and high-risk regions, and Hunan kept out the trucks from Nanjing, Zhengzhou, and Zhangjiajie, resulting in the delay of some spot deliveries.

The transportation of refined lead in Guangdong and Yunnan was normal, but the market had strong sentiment of wait and see, so the transactions were limited.

Zinc industry:

The overall impact on production and transportation of zinc industry was limited. Only some trucks from Hunan and Jiangsu needed to carry the vaccination or nucleic acid test record for passage.

Tin industry:

The upstream tin industries are mainly concentrated in south-west China, and Yunnan was little affected by the pandemic. The downstream industries are mainly in the south-east coastal regions, where the orders have shrunk due to the price factors. The overall impact of the pandemic on tin industry was limited.

New energy industry:

The logistics were impeded in Jiangsu, Hunan, and other regions with serious pandemic. However, the production of major cobalt and lithium new energy companies were affected significantly. The lithium salt smelters in Jiangsu basically maintained normal production, but the logistics were slightly delayed. The transactions and deliveries stayed low recently, and were not affected by the pandemic. The production and logistics of cathode materials in Hunan, Jiangsu, and Nanjing basically remained normal, and the transport personnel needed to have nucleic acid test.

Minor metals:

According to SMM survey, the production and transportation of minor metals remained normal. In some areas such as Zhuzhou and Zigong, drivers needed to have a nucleic acid test certificate for passage.

Chromium industry:

Inner Mongolia and Shanxi, the major ferrochrome production regions, have not seen new COVID-19 cases. The new cases in Sichuan and Guangxi did not affected the production. The transportation in Jiangsu and Hunan was limited. Hunan had fewer ferrochrome companies, and the output was low. The production and transportation was further restricted by the pandemic after the environmental inspections.