SMM, September 9:
Today, mainstream quotations in China’s waste lead-acid battery market held steady. A few smelters slightly lowered their scrap battery purchase prices, while most others remained unchanged, with no unified follow-through decline. Suppliers at retail outlets showed moderate willingness to sell and were in no rush to offload at low prices. Recyclers reported difficulty sourcing goods from the front end and adjusted their quotes in line with smelters in their respective regions, maintaining a fast-in, fast-out purchasing and sales model. The market currently lacks a clear one-sided driver, and recyclers and suppliers generally remain cautious and wait-and-see, watching for lead price direction. Sentiment is somewhat divided: on one hand, attention is on whether downstream purchasing can pick up after entering mid-September next week and drive lead prices higher; on the other hand, there are concerns that repeated lead price fluctuations could drag scrap battery prices down, making them reluctant to stockpile aggressively. Smelters continued purchasing as needed, with overall stable raw material arrivals. Downstream battery enterprises still mainly purchased as needed and through long-term contracts, with no significant volume increase yet. In the short term, scrap battery prices are expected to remain stable and move sideways. Attention should be paid to the start of downstream purchasing in mid-September and changes in suppliers’ willingness to sell.
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