MMi Daily Iron Ore Report (July 21th)

[Ex-China Lead Market Dynamics] It was learned that the recent environmental protection inspections on secondary lead in the Vietnamese market had temporarily come to an end, and some lead smelters had gradually resumed production. However, in the face of the current primary lead supply gap, spot lead in the local market continued to maintain high premiums. According to the latest information, the CIF premium for Vietnamese lead ingots with Pb≥99.99% in June had reached $180/mt as a common transaction price, compared to around $165/mt in May.

[Waste Lead-Acid Battery Collection Enterprise Updates] Recently, the Xinye Branch of the Nanyang Municipal Ecology and Environment Bureau in Henan Province officially approved the Environmental Impact Assessment Report for the waste lead-acid battery collection, storage, and transfer project of Nanyang Zhongjie Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. (Wan Xin Huan Shen [2026] No. 8). The project will construct a comprehensive workshop integrating weighing, loading and unloading, and storage, with designated areas for intact batteries, dedicated storage rooms for damaged batteries, and temporary hazardous waste storage rooms, with a designed annual collection and transfer capacity of 5,000 mt of waste lead-acid batteries.

[Secondary Lead Enterprise Updates] It was reported that the 200,000 mt lead-acid battery environmental protection utilization project of Dongying Xinsanyuan Environmental Protection Technology Co., Ltd. was under orderly construction and progressing on schedule, and was expected to be completed and put into operation before the end of 2026. As a key project in Dongying City, Shandong Province, the project had a total investment of 480 million yuan, covering an area of 103 mu. Once completed, it will fill the regional gap in the harmless treatment and resource utilization of waste lead-acid batteries, injecting new momentum into regional green circular development.