Lead Demand Up, Fundamentals “Relatively Good”

Bloomberg reported that demand for lead is growing as a result of battery makers depleting stock in Chinese warehouses.

As quoted in the market news:

The inventories in Guangdong province and Shanghai, the two main trading regions, fell to about 100,000 metric tons this month, the lowest level since February 2010 and down from a record 300,000 tons in August 2011, according to SMM Information & Technology Co., citing data from a weekly survey. The figure doesn’t include holdings in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses, which have dropped 52 percent since the year’s peak in February.

Falling inventories and higher demand growth may support prices on the London Metal Exchange, while boosting profit at China’s biggest lead producer, Henan Yuguang Gold & Lead Co. Chinese battery production expanded to a record in June, according to Barclays Plc, which said that there may be a global lead deficit in the final quarter of this year.

Click here to read the full Bloomberg report.