Scrap Battery Held Up Well This Week, Tug-of-War Between Sellers and Buyers Limited Price Fluctuations [SMM Scrap Battery Weekly Review]

SMM August 21 News:

This week, the scrap battery market remained stable overall, with a few smelters slightly raising their purchase quotations by 20-100 yuan/mt, mainly for EV batteries; the tight supply of scrap batteries persisted throughout the week without improvement. As the traditional "September-October peak season" approaches, the sentiment of major store operators to hold back from selling gradually intensified, with available cargo being scarce. Both recyclers and smelters reported that daily average purchase volume dropped by about 20-30% recently, and recyclers generally maintained a fast-in fast-out purchasing and sales model. On the smelter side, raw material arrivals were generally stable but showed regional divergence, with areas offering higher purchase prices seeing relatively better arrivals. As lead prices stabilized and rose, losses at secondary lead smelters narrowed, and operating rates rebounded; however, lingering losses limited the upside room for scrap battery purchase prices. Downstream lead-acid battery consumption improved somewhat but remained dominated by just-in-time procurement. Overall, scrap battery prices moved sideways this week under the influence of secondary lead losses and tight supply. Next week, scrap battery prices are expected to continue moving sideways, with focus on the extent of demand realization during the traditional "September-October peak season," the release of store supply, and the progress of the rebound in secondary lead smelter operating rates.