As some primary lead delivery brands complete maintenance and imported lead continues to arrive, social inventory of lead ingots may continue to increase

According to the SMM survey, as of August 1, the total social inventory of lead ingots in the five major regions reached 39,800 mt, an increase of over 700 mt compared to July 25, and a decrease of 2,400 mt compared to July 29.

According to the survey, lead prices have shown a trend of fluctuating downward recently. Downstream enterprises purchased as needed at lower prices. For example, inventories in Jiangsu and Tianjin warehouses synchronously decreased due to downstream pick-up. Meanwhile, the domestic supply of secondary lead significantly increased, leading to rapidly expanded discounts for secondary refined lead, with major production areas quoting ex-factory prices at a discount of 200-50 yuan/mt to the SMM 1# lead average price. Additionally, imported lead (refined lead) arrived. Especially in Shanghai, imported lead has started to be quoted for sale, such as Kazakhstan lead and Philippine lead offered to sell at a discount of 500-480 yuan/mt to the SHFE 2408 lead contract. The overall circulation of lead in the market significantly increased, providing more purchasing options for downstream enterprises, and lead ingot inventories also turned to a slight increase trend. Furthermore, in August, as some primary lead delivery brands complete maintenance, and imported lead continues to arrive, social inventory of lead ingots may continue to increase.