South Korea’s Used Battery Import Slows Down in January

South Korea’s import of used battery, main material for lead smelters and refiners, decreased by 23.9% to 16,354 tonnes in January from December, according to the trade statistics by Korea Customs Service. The import from Japan represented the lowest volume in 8 months. The import from the U.S.A. recovered along with lead market price upsurge while the import from other countries, including Japan, decreased.

The trade statistics are introduced by Japan External Trade Organization. South Korea’s used battery import hit record high of 21,485 tonnes in December 2010 while downturned in January after 6-month increase. The import was 8,120 tonnes from the U.S.A. and 3,000 tonnes from Japan in January.

The import from the U.S.A. tends to increase when international lead market price surges. The import from Japan decreases when U.S. export increases. The import from Japan was almost doubled from 2,000-tonne level in May 2010 for September-December. Meanwhile, the volume downed to 3,000 tonnes in January, even relatively-high level but the lowest since May 2010.

South Korea’s used battery import totaled 179,378 tonnes in 2010, which increased by 21.4% year-on-year. The import from the U.S.A. increased by 22.3% to 69,990 tonnes while the import from Japan decreased by 13.4% to 44,179 tonnes. The import from Dominican Republic increased by 66.3% to 20,366 tonnes. The import from Kuwait increased by 149% to 13,413 tonnes.