The Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract Fell Below the 390,000 Mark in Night Session, Spot Market Transactions May Recover [SMM Tin Morning Brief]

SMM Tin Morning Brief, April 22, 2026:

Futures: The most-traded SHFE tin contract opened slightly higher in the night session before fluctuating downward, breaking below the 390,000 mark all the way down to close at 387,680 yuan/mt, down 1.85%.

Macro: (1) Data released by Japan's Ministry of Finance on Wednesday showed that Japan's export growth accelerated in March, driven by recovering demand and strong exports of semiconductors and electronic parts. Japan's total exports in March were up 11.7% YoY, higher than the revised 4% growth in February and exceeding the analyst median forecast of 11%; imports grew 10.9%, up from 10.3% in the previous month; the non-seasonally adjusted trade surplus expanded to 667 billion yen ($4.2 billion). Affected by US tariffs, Japan's exports to the US grew 3.4%. Driven by chips, electronic parts, and non-ferrous metals, Japan's exports to the EU grew 18.2% as disruptions related to the Chinese New Year holiday subsided. (2) According to foreign media reports, Apple's (AAPL.O) next CEO John Ternus faces a major challenge as he takes over: retaining top talent during a period of historic personnel changes. After years of relative calm, Apple has recently experienced a wave of departures — from both the executive level and rank-and-file engineers. Ternus, who is set to replace Tim Cook as CEO in September, is tasked with stabilizing the workforce. At the end of last year, highly regarded chip division head Johny Srouji told Cook that he was seriously considering leaving Apple. Apple recently retained Srouji by offering him a new compensation package and a broader job title — the company's first-ever Chief Hardware Officer. Ternus will need to address succession issues and the potential departure of other executives, including Mike Rockwell and several long-tenured leaders who are about to retire.

Fundamentals: (1) Supply side: Most smelters focused on maintaining stable production in April. (2) Demand side: Downstream purchase remained cautious, with procurement conducted based on order conditions.

Spot market: Although futures fluctuated slightly downward yesterday, the absolute price center of tin remained in a high range from an overall trend perspective. Against this backdrop, the spot market trading pattern did not change significantly. Facing relatively high price levels, end-users showed no notable release of purchase willingness and continued to primarily follow up on rigid demand to ensure basic factory production. Market inquiries and actual trading volume remained mediocre. Suppliers adjusted their quotes in line with the market, and both supply and demand sides maintained the previous stalemate and wait-and-see stance.

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