[China Iron Ore Brief] Iron Ore Concentrates Prices in West Liaoning May Remain in the Doldrums

[SMM Steel] Hyundai-POSCO Louisiana Steel LLC appointed Danieli to supply equipment for a new integrated steel plant in the US focused on low-carbon automotive steel production. The project includes a 2.5 million tpy ENERGIRON® DRI plant designed for hydrogen use and carbon capture, along with two electric arc furnaces capable of producing 2.88 million tpy. Danieli will also provide slab casters, secondary metallurgy systems, and reheating furnaces compatible with natural gas and hydrogen blends to support future decarbonization targets.

[Capital-Driven Silicon Metal Prices Trend Stronger After Holiday, Spot Price Center Shifts Upward]: The silicon metal market trended stronger after the Labour Day holiday, with the most-traded futures contract breaking through resistance levels to rise above 9,000 yuan/mt. As of the morning of May 7, SMM east China oxygen-blown #553 silicon was at 9,200-9,300 yuan/mt, up 150 yuan/mt WoW. Futures prices continued to trend stronger after the holiday, and silicon suppliers raised spot offer prices multiple times in small incremental probes, with east China #553 silicon offers rising above 9,300 yuan/mt. In the futures market, the SI2609 contract closed at 9,080 yuan/mt on Thursday, up 285 yuan/mt WoW, with an intraday high touching 9,180 yuan/mt. Low-priced sources in the silicon metal market decreased or disappeared, and the transaction center shifted notably higher compared to pre-holiday levels as just-in-time procurement provided support. This round of strengthening was mainly driven by macro and capital momentum, with no substantive bullish support from the industry fundamentals for the time being. From late April to early May, silicon enterprises increasingly hedged in batches on price rallies and sold against the basis, with cargo ownership gradually shifting to futures-spot traders. After futures were pushed higher, spot liquidity issues tended to emerge easily. While futures remained elevated and fundamentals were weak, rigid demand provided support, and spot prices passively followed the upward trend.

[SMM HRC Daily Trading] On May 7, the combined daily trading volume of HRC from SMM's sample enterprises across four cities (Shanghai, Lecong, Tianjin, Ningbo) totaled 16,260 mt, down 1,000 mt DoD (-5.8%), up 65.75% YoY (solar calendar), and up 46.09% YoY (lunar calendar).