July-August Domestic Primary Lead Smelters Resumed Maintenance, Raw Material Inventories Slightly Accumulated [SMM Analysis]

According to an SMM survey, the average days of raw material inventories at domestic smelters increased by 1.3 days MoM in July, with a significant rise in raw material inventory increments compared to June. Based on the SMM survey, on one hand, primary lead smelters resumed as scheduled in mid-to-late July, leading to an increase in raw material reserves at smelters. On the other hand, the lead import window opened in July, expanding the import profitability of crude lead and lead concentrate. Several primary lead smelters mentioned concentrated pickups under long-term orders and supplementary imports of crude lead, resulting in varying degrees of increase in primary lead raw material inventories.

Additionally, after the lead concentrate import window opened, there were more quotations for lead concentrate in the trade market. Smelters engaged in bargain hunting or concentrated pickups of imported lead concentrate under long-term orders, with some smelters purchasing crude lead rich in tin and antimony as supplementary raw materials for primary lead production. A few smelters in Henan, Jiangxi, and other regions mentioned that their raw material inventories had increased from 30 days to nearly 60 days, including imported raw materials related to silver-lead ore processing trade and supplementary imported crude lead. The supply tightness of raw materials for primary lead smelters slightly eased, and some smelters slightly raised their lead concentrate TC quotations after the increase in raw material inventory days.