Zinc, lead TCs sink further in May on smelter restocking despite tentative mine restarts

Spot treatment charges (TCs) for zinc and lead concentrate continued their downward trajectories in May even as some South American miners announced restart of operations after two months of Covid-19 related shutdowns.

Miners are in need of cash and keen to resume production but they face the challenge of a rising number of coronavirus cases in the continent, which the World Health Organization has dubbed as a "new epicenter" of the novel coronavirus.
Therefore, most market participants were skeptical of news at the end of May of major mines, such as Peru's Antamina and Bolivia's San Cristobal, starting to resume operations, saying they do not expect a speedy ramp up of mining output in South America.
Fastmarkets assessed the zinc concentrate TC, cif China at $155-170 per tonne on Friday May 29, falling 13.3% from $180-195 per tonne the previous month.
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Meanwhile, tendered tonnages were awarded at even lower levels at the beginning of this month. Dugald River zinc for June-July shipment was reported to be awarded at around...

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