Japan Battery Makers Seek Other Lead Sources Than China

Japanese battery makers seem increasing lead ingot procurement from overseas other than China. In January, Chinese ratio to Japanese total lead ingot import lowered to 38% and import from Peru exceeded that from China, according to the trade statistics by Ministry of Finance. Chinese government started to put 10% tariff on its lead export in January. Japanese lead users seem shifting to other countries’ material from China.Price gap has widened between Japanese and overseas market prices of secondary lead ingot. Recycling materials, such as battery scrap and bullion, recently tend to flowing out to overseas markets. Japanese battery makers are forced to cover material shortage with imported lead ingot. Japanese lead ingot import expanded to 5 times in 2007 compared with 2006.Japanese lead import from Peru exceeded 1,000 tonnes in October 2007 while it was nothing during January-June 2007. In 2006, 99% of Japanese lead import was from China. Since October 2007, lead import has sharply increased from countries other than China.Japanese battery makers may increase lead import more from farther countries other than China by long-term contracts for stable material procurement. They might utilize Chinese lead for spot purchasing.