Traders Flood into Aluminum Market on Growing Bullishness, SMM Reports

According to Yingketong, Midea Air Conditioning officially announced in July 2026 that it will no longer initiate the traditional Cold Year Opening for the 2027 new cooling year, instead fully committing to a new strategy of “battling for retail and competing for end-users.” This decision marks a temporary halt to the near three-decade-old model of “collecting payments in the off-season and chasing volume in the peak season” within the air conditioning industry. The “Cold Year Opening” is a unique business rhythm in the air conditioning sector. Typically, starting from H2 (from July/August to October/November), producers hold openings in batches through policy incentives to attract channel merchants to make advance payments and stockpile goods. Then, in H1 of the following year, they concentrate shipments through various large-scale sales promotions, creating a cycle of “pushing inventory in the off-season and chasing volume in the peak season.” The specific measures for Midea Air Conditioning’s cancellation of the new Cold Year Opening include: no longer holding opening meetings that involve centralized channel payments, policy lock-in, and large-scale stockpiling; abolishing the practice of “mandatory advance payments to lock in annual policies”; and shifting to terminal replenishment based on actual demand, with full-cycle normalized policies implemented.

Pada akhir Juli, biaya pemrosesan billet aluminium Tiongkok terus menurun dari titik tertingginya pada Juni, dengan biaya pemrosesan billet aluminium φ120 di beberapa area konsumsi utama mendekati garis biaya produksi. Di tengah melemahnya permintaan marjinal selama musim sepi, meningkatnya pasokan di Tiongkok Selatan, dan harga aluminium yang relatif stabil, apakah biaya pemrosesan mampu bertahan di dekat garis biaya telah menjadi isu inti yang menjadi fokus pasar....

[Analisis SMM: Biaya Pemrosesan Billet Aluminium Turun Mendekati Garis Biaya Produksi – Dapatkah Bertahan?] Memasuki akhir Juli, biaya pemrosesan billet aluminium di Tiongkok terus melemah dari puncak Juni, dengan biaya pemrosesan billet aluminium φ120 di beberapa daerah konsumsi utama mendekati garis biaya produksi. Pasar merasakan tekanan ganda untuk mempertahankan harga dan tetap melakukan pengiriman. Menurut data terbaru SMM, per 23 Juli, persediaan sosial billet aluminium di daerah konsumsi utama Tiongkok naik menjadi 121.000 ton, menandai peningkatan persediaan dua minggu berturut-turut. Pada periode yang sama, penarikan dari gudang turun menjadi 33.000 ton, penurunan mingguan yang jelas. Dengan latar belakang permintaan musim sepi yang melemah, peningkatan kedatangan di Tiongkok Selatan, dan pusat harga aluminium yang relatif stabil, apakah biaya pemrosesan dapat bertahan di dekat garis biaya produksi telah menjadi isu inti yang diperhatikan pasar.