The weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot in Delhi on Wednesday settled at Rs160,520/mt ($2,200/mt) ex-works producer, down by Rs955/mt amid sluggish demand in the city. Offers were reduced in line with a weekly drop in LME and to attract some fresh trades.
The three-month LME lead contract on Tuesday settled at $2,154/mt, down by $28.5/mt or 1.31pc from a week ago. This pushed domestic scrap prices down in Delhi. Demand suffered in the city on Wednesday although it is expected to improve. Offers for secondary lead ingot were heard between Rs160,000-161,000/mt ex-works producer in Delhi.
Situation for lead markets in Mumbai was slightly different with majority smelters still shut and facing production cuts amid labour shortages. Prices in Mumbai rose over the prior week driven by the slight shortage in the city. The weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot for Mumbai settled at Rs160,033/mt ex-works producer, up by Rs1,716/mt driven by continued shortage.
The weekly Davis Index for lead batteries (drained) settled at Rs93,950/mt del Mumbai consumer, up by Rs560/mt as secondary lead ingot prices are up too, leading to higher offers for battery scrap. The index for lead batteries (drained) in Delhi settled at Rs92,420/mt del consumer, down Rs140/mt as secondary lead ingot prices have also fallen.
Several battery manufacturing companies and secondary ingot makers are looking towards export markets amid a low demand in India. The domestic situation will improve once the lockdown is completely lifted.
The markets in Delhi and Mumbai improved in terms of spreads. In Delhi, despite a fall in prices, markets strengthened for both secondary lead ingot and lead batteries. Shortage in Mumbai supported prices of secondary lead ingots and battery scrap.
Auto sector continues to struggle, impacting demand for batteries but telecom sector remains strong. End-user consumption of inverter batteries and industrial batteries will improve once the lockdown is lifted.
($1=Rs72.96)