Global lead and zinc markets in surplus during Jan-Jun'23: ILZSG

The International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) has provided preliminary data on the global supply and demand of lead and zinc during the first half of 2023.

World refined lead supply

According to data, the refined lead metal market showed a surplus of 25,000 tonnes (t) in the first half of 2023, while reported inventories stayed relatively stable during this period. Lead mine production on a global scale increased by 3.3%, driven by growth in Kazakhstan, South Africa, and Australia. Notably, Galena Mining's successful launch of the Abra mine, with an annual capacity of 95,000 t, contributed to this rise in Australia.

Global lead metal production increased by 1.9%, primarily due to elevated output in Australia, China, India, and the Republic of Korea. Nevertheless, European production dropped by 4.8% due to declines in Bulgaria, Italy, and the United Kingdom, which were partially offset by a rise in Germany.

Increased refined lead metal consumption in Mexico and India were offset by declines in Europe, the Republic of Korea, Turkey, and the United States, leading to a global decrease of 0.9%.

Chinese imports of lead contained in concentrates rose by 30.8% to 316,000 t. Net exports of refined lead metal reached 76,000 t, in contrast to net imports of 89,000 t during the same period in 2022.

Refined zinc supply and usage

Preliminary figures submitted to the ILZSG reveal that global supply of refined zinc metal outstripped demand by 370,000 t in the initial half of 2023, resulting in a net inventory increase of 85,000 t.

Zinc mine production worldwide declined in Burkina Faso, Canada, Sweden, and Australia due to heavy rains affecting mining operations in the first quarter. These decreases were partly offset by increases in Brazil, Kazakhstan, Peru, and Portugal, leading to a global reduction of 0.7%.

The primary factor for the global increase of 2.7% in refined metal production was a notable surge in Chinese output. Australia saw growth due to expanded capacity at the Sun Metals Zinc Refinery, while Mexico also experienced a rise. However, Europe, Canada, and Japan observed lower production compared to the same period in 2022.

Higher consumption of refined zinc metal in China, India, and the United States were tempered by decreases in Europe, Brazil, the Republic of Korea, Taiwan (China), Thailand, and Turkey, leading to a net global increase of 0.8%.

Imports of zinc contained in concentrates by China surged by 25.5% to reach 1.08 mnt. Meanwhile, net imports of refined zinc metal amounted to 94,000 t, a significant shift from net exports of 11,000 t in the first half of 2022.