Widening Spread Between Futures and Spot Prices Drives Transfer to Delivery Warehouse, Social Inventory of Lead Ingots Continues to Increase [[SMM Social Inventory of Lead Ingots]]

        SMM News on May 8: According to SMM, as of May 8, the total social inventory of lead ingots in five regions tracked by SMM reached 47,500 mt, an increase of 2,200 mt from April 30 and an increase of 1,600 mt from May 6.

        After the Labour Day holiday, the weak consumption in the lead-acid battery market persisted, with some enterprises continuing to use their previous inventory, resulting in limited demand for lead ingot procurement. Meanwhile, as lead prices weakened, downstream enterprises adopted a wait-and-see attitude, making just-in-time procurement only, and were unable to quickly digest the accumulated lead ingot inventory during the holiday. As the weekend approached, lead prices stopped falling and rebounded, with the spread between futures and spot prices gradually widening. For example, the ex-factory quotes for mainstream primary lead supplies in producing areas widened from a discount of 80-120 yuan/mt against the SHFE lead 2506 contract at the beginning of the week to the current discount of 120-220 yuan/mt. Next week, the SHFE lead 2505 contract is expected to enter delivery, with suppliers' willingness to transfer to delivery warehouse increasing. The inventory of delivery brands is shifting from in-plant inventory to delivery warehouses, causing the social inventory of lead ingots to rise again, and there is still room for further increase before delivery.