Weekly Brief Review of the Lead Concentrates Market (July 27–31, 2026) [SMM Lead Concentrates Weekly Review]

This week, the weekly Pb50 domestic TC was flat at 150 yuan/mt Pb, and the weekly Pb60 imported TC was flat at -$170/dmt. During the week, enterprises were mainly negotiating TCs for the next month. Based on current negotiations, concentrates rich in associated metals are expected to edge down, while standard concentrates are expected to see relatively small changes. This is mainly because profits from minor metals such as sulphuric acid and silver have become the primary support for ore-derived lead smelting profits. During the week, it was heard that lead concentrates containing silver and antimony with separate valuation were transacted at a TC of -450 yuan/mt Pb. Meanwhile, some lead concentrates were sold together with zinc concentrates, with the lead concentrates containing copper, gold, and silver, settling at a TC of -200 yuan/mt Pb. Some high-silver concentrates with a small amount of unvalued copper were transacted at a TC price of -3,700 yuan/mt Pb. In July, some domestic mines reduced or halted production due to safety and environmental protection inspections and the rainy season. Production is expected to recover in August, while domestic ore-derived lead smelters are anticipated to undergo maintenance in late August. It is expected that there will be limited room for further declines in domestic lead concentrate TCs in August. On the imported concentrates side, port lead concentrate inventory stood at a relatively high level of over 30,000 mt, and with the ratio at low levels, mainstream transaction prices for imported concentrates remained unchanged, mainly steady.