News

[SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: Concerns Over Persistent Global Inflation; LME Zinc Posted Five Consecutive Down Days] Overnight, LME zinc posted five consecutive down days, with the center of the daily candlestick moving lower. As tensions in the Middle East heightened market concerns over persistent global inflation, the US dollar strengthened, putting pressure on the overall base metals complex, but......

[SMM Lead Morning Meeting Minutes: Geopolitical Risks Continue to Escalate, Lead Prices Under Pressure and Volatile Pull Back] The renewed US-Iran conflict has reignited “inflation concerns,” and the probability of the US Fed’s second interest rate cut this year has fallen to 50%. Overseas geopolitical tensions remain unchanged, supply-chain pressures are significant, and damage to the economic environment has weighed on base metals broadly, leading to widespread weakness...

[SMM Tin Morning Update: The Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract Continued Its Downtrend in the Night Session After Hitting the Down-Limit in the Daytime Session, While Downstream Enterprises’ Purchasing Appetite Surged Significantly]

Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, has officially entered the US renewable energy market by acquiring a 33.3% stake in a $2.6 billion portfolio consisting of 17 solar plants and five onshore wind facilities. Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM) will pay $425 million for its share of the 2.3-gigawatt capacity portfolio, joining partners British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI) and Brookfield. The assets will be managed under a new joint venture, Northview Energy, which plans to invest up to an additional $1.5 billion in future renewable projects across the US and Canada.

[Shanghai Spot Copper] For tomorrow, Shanghai spot copper discounts are expected to continue a modest recovery trend, but the room for improvement is limited. During the second trading session of the day, spot premiums and discounts for SHFE copper gradually stabilized, with suppliers making no significant price adjustments. Only non-registered copper discount quotes dropped slightly, indicating an increased willingness among suppliers to hold prices firm. Meanwhile, downstream acceptance of current prices has been gradually improving, and buying and selling sentiment remains stable. In terms of market structure, the price spread between futures contracts for the next month narrowed slightly, suggesting that suppliers' willingness to ship to delivery warehouses may have decreased. On the supply side, domestic copper and previously locked-price imported sources continue to arrive, coupled with high social inventory, resulting in an overall ample supply of circulating goods. On the demand side, downstream enterprises are steadily resuming production, and buying and selling sentiment has rebounded MoM, but the overall pace of recovery remains slow, making it difficult to provide strong support for premiums and discounts. Overall, while spot premiums and discounts are slowly recovering, there are still upward resistance.

[SMM Tin Midday Review: Macro Sentiment Retreat and Supply Recovery Expectations Lead to Over 7% Decline in the Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract]

According to the UK Financial Times, SpaceX expects its "Starship" to be ready by mid-next year for launching a new generation of "Starlink" satellites. Meanwhile, the company is preparing for a crucial test ahead of an IPO that could value it at as much as $1.5 trillion. At the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, executives from Musk's rocket company provided the clearest timetable yet for the commercial debut of the next-generation rocket. Michael Nichols, SpaceX's Senior Vice President of Starlink Business, stated that the "Starship" will be ready in time to launch the upgraded constellation of Starlink mobile satellites by mid-2027. During a break at the conference, SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell said that the "Starship" test flight is expected to take place within the next four to six weeks. Musk had previously hinted in a social media post in January that the 12th test flight of the "Starship" would occur in early March.

In North China, #1 copper cathode spot prices against the front-month contract ranged from a discount of 460 to 300 yuan/mt, up 20 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average transaction price was 101,520 yuan/mt, down 520 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

[Summary of SMM Lead Morning Meeting: Lead Ingot Destocking Boosts Lead Prices While Geopolitical Risks Persist] Iran: Will Not Negotiate with the US, Timing of Ceasefire to Be Decided by Iran, Has Not Attacked Saudi Aramco; Strait of Hormuz Closed, All Vessels Attempting to Pass Will Be Targeted. Entering the Second Week After Chinese New Year, the Majority of Domestic Lead-Acid Battery Enterprises Have Basically Resumed Operations, Lead Consumption Gradually Recovers, and on the Supply Side...