Latest Update in the China Lead Market

Shanghai nonferrous metals closed all with gains as the macro sentiment has been boosted by a series of bullish news. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said that the country is capable of dealing with changes beyond expectations in the face of the 5.5% GDP growth target.

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on Jun 28, 2022

LME lead opened at $1,940.5/mt rose by 2.45% to $1,987/mt overnight after hitting the lowest point at 1,936.5/mt and rising to the highest point at $2,009.5/mt. The open interest increased by 21 lots to 91,384 lots from the previous trading day.

SHFE and LME base metals closed mostly with gains as the shorts withdrew from the market after paying off. The market sentiment, on the other hand, has also stabilised as the US core durable goods orders grew by 0.5% in May, adding credibility to Fed Chairman Powell's assertion that the economy is strong enough to withstand interest rate hikes to curb the impact of inflation.

Shanghai nonferrous metals closed mixed today as the market pessimism, triggered by aggressive rate hikes in Europe and the US as well as less-than-expected economic readings, has been digested to some extent.

As of June 27, the social inventory of lead ingots across Shanghai, Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Tianjin was 81,800 mt, down 3,100 mt from last Friday (June 24) and 12,500 mt from last Monday (June 20).

The following table shows the ferrous and nonferrous metals movement on the SHFE and DCE on Jun 27, 2022

As the first half of 2022 draws to a close, if we were to pick the general asset class with the most dramatic movement in the first and second quarters, the answer would probably be the industrial metals.