Supply Tightness of Secondary Crude Lead Eased a Bit

SHANGHAI, Mar 27 (SMM) - Last week, the lead prices fluctuated rangebound, and the transactions were acceptable. At present, the ex-factory prices of mainstream secondary crude lead, including tax, are 350-300 yuan/mt below the SMM average price of #1 lead, and the prices were also available on a delivery-to-factory basis when the distance between smelters and downstream enterprises was short.

The ex-factory prices of some secondary crude lead sellers are 14,050-14,100 yuan/mt excluding tax, and the mainstream prices excluding tax are 14,100-14,150 yuan/mt. Due to the limited supply of battery scrap and the equipment issue, the output of secondary crude lead in Inner Mongolia was still low. But as some smelters in other parts of north China purchased lead slag and lead paste for their own use, the supply tightness was not prominent given weak demand.

The maintenance of smelters in Ningxia affected a certain amount of output, but the production is relatively stable and cargoes are mainly supplied under long-term contracts to Henan and Anhui. Some smelters in Jiangxi are preparing for maintenance and technical transformation, and may shut down from April to June. At the same time, some other enterprises may resume production in June.