Domestic lead scrap and ingot prices jumped weekly on Wednesday driven by sustained demand and a slight surge in LME lead. Lead’s is possibly the only market that is largely unaffected by the lockdowns across the country. However, the situation might change soon, according to major lead recycling units.
The official three-month LME lead contract settled at $2,049.5/mt on Tuesday, up by $72.5/mt in a week, up 3.67pc. Global demand for lead remains strong but soon the semiconductor chip shortage might impact the consumption of lead globally. Domestic market weakened in terms of spreads for all the grades.
Delhi
In Delhi, the weekly Davis Index for lead batteries (drained) settled at Rs94,225/mt ($1,249.67) del consumer, up by Rs392/mt due to high offers. Some sellers kept their prices unchanged while others raised it. Trades were on regular basis. The market for the grade weakened in terms of spreads which widened by 2.21pc from the prior week, despite a marginal rise in prices. The index for lead batteries (drained) in Delhi rose only 0.42pc from the prior week.
The weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot on Wednesday settled at Rs160,538/mt ex-works producer, up by Rs538/mt, driven by a hike in scrap prices and LME. The effect of lockdown is not yet substantial, but the situation could change soon which may hit end-users’ demand. However, pent-up demand has proven to push prices in the previous year, as it blows demand out of proportion after lockdown is lifted.
The market for secondary lead ingot in Delhi weakened in terms of spreads which contracted by 3.85pc from the prior week despite prices jumping by 0.34pc. Seasonally, demand for lead remains high at this time of the year as production of UPS and generators is ramped-up in summers. Demand from auto might be slightly weak but is generally offset by demand from other segments.
Mumbai
The weekly Davis Index for lead batteries (drained) for Mumbai on Wednesday settled at Rs90,250/mt del consumer, up by Rs500/mt. Scrap segregation and draining lead batteries is labour intensive job. Shortage of labourers in Mumbai due to the stringent lockdowns could result in scarcity of scrap and drive prices higher. The market for the grade weakened in terms of spreads which widened by 2.03pc from the prior week spread.
The weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot rose by Rs1,039/mt to Rs152,483/mt ex-works producer on Wednesday led by a hike in scrap prices and gaining LME levels. Demand remained steady. The market for the grade weakened as spreads contracted by 3.30pc from the prior week despite a slight jump in prices. The index for the grade rose 0.69pc in the same period.
In the second half of the day, secondary lead ingot offers rose to Rs155,00/mt ex-works producers because of supply constraints in the city
The Indian Rupee on Wednesday was 75.4 against the US Dollar, which has now raised import prices. Many domestic players too have raised prices of lead grades to bring them at par with imported prices. This is also one of the reasons pushing domestic prices up.
($1=Rs75.4)