Lead Scrap Market Price Slightly Declines in Tokyo

Lead scrap market price decreased by 2 yen per kilogram around Tokyo on Tuesday when Mitsubishi Materials revised down its electrolytic lead selling price, the market indicator, by 10,000 yen to 243,000 yen per tonne. The market price became around 105-115 yen per kg for high grade lead scrap, around 95-105 yen per kg for electrode plate scrap and around 75-85 yen per kg for typographic lead scrap.

Lead scrap demand is relatively low for such applications as batteries and bobs. Meanwhile, scrap generation maintains very low in the market. Scrap inventories are decreasing at scrap dealers and secondary lead smelters.

High grade lead scrap demand is low from bob makers while the demand is recovering from brass bar makers. Local secondary lead smelters have held scrap inventories as much as 4-month consumptions while some smelters’ inventories decreased by half due to the demand recovery since the beginning of this year. Secondary lead smelters pay 120-125 yen per kg for high grade scrap and some pay as high as 130 yen for a large lot sales.

Supply and demand balance keeps tight for used battery and electrode plate scrap. However, the market price is not too high in the non-demand season.