SMM December 31:
The SMM weekly operating rate for secondary lead in four provinces was 37.59% for December 26, 2025 to January 1, 2026, down 7.77 percentage points WoW. At 18:00 on December 26, 2025, Anhui province again activated a Level II heavy pollution weather alert, leading some secondary lead enterprises in the region to suspend furnaces for holding temperature; the regional operating rate fell 17.83 percentage points WoW. In Henan province, individual enterprises increased production slightly due to internal demand, while other enterprises maintained stable operations, resulting in a regional operating rate increase of 1.25 percentage points. The operating rate in Jiangsu province was basically flat WoW. In Inner Mongolia, a large smelter reduced output as continuous declines in raw material inventory threatened production, leading to an 8 percentage point drop in the regional operating rate. Next week, environmental protection-related controls and raw material supply will remain the main factors threatening production. Smelters in Anhui indicated that if environmental controls are lifted over the weekend, production is expected to recover next week. SMM forecasts the secondary lead operating rate will increase by 2.41 percentage points next week.
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