Lead prices across grades increased on Wednesday from last week in Mumbai and in Delhi, while secondary lead ingot prices jumped higher than most other grades in Delhi. Prices rose in line with a $20/mt jump in the official three-month LME lead contract which settled at $2,005/mt on Tuesday from a week ago.
The weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot in Delhi Wednesday rose by Rs3,462/mt ($47/mt) and settled at Rs155,462/mt ex-works producer on high offers. Demand was firm in both Mumbai and Delhi.
The weekly index for lead batteries (drained) Delhi settled higher by Rs1,000/mt at Rs88,500/mt del consumer on the back of rising prices of secondary lead ingot and sustained demand from smelters.
Markets for lead battery scrap and ingot in Delhi strengthened in terms of spread. The Delhi index for lead batteries (drained) gained 1.14pc while spreads for the index narrowed by 0.14pc. Spreads for secondary lead ingot Index for Delhi widened by 1.42pc while the index rose by 2.28pc from previous Wednesday.
In Mumbai, the weekly Davis Index for secondary lead ingot settled at Rs153,500/mt ex-works producer, up by Rs1,250/mt. Offers are only rising on speculations and not as an effect of better demand or trades. The weekly Index for lead batteries (drained) in Mumbai settled at Rs91,000/mt, up by Rs1,056/mt.
The Mumbai markets strengthened for secondary lead ingots but strengthened for drained battery scrap in terms of spreads. Mumbai’s index for secondary lead ingot rose marginally by 0.82pc from the prior week but spreads for the index narrowed by 0.09pc. The index for Mumbai’s battery scrap was up 1.17pc while spreads narrowed by 0.16pc.
Production of major automakers around the world is hurt with the low supply of semiconductors, used majorly in manufacturing of automotive electronics. This may affect demand from auto sector but demand from telecom sectors is strong. Smelters noted that battery manufacturing process is healthy and driving demand, justifying the price hikes in line with higher LME levels.
($1 = Rs73.56)