In November, China imported 110.54 million tons of iron ore and concentrates, declined 769,000 tons MoM, a decrease of 0.7% MoM. Cumulative imports from January to November totaled 1.139202 billion tons, up 1.4% YoY.

On December 8, data from the General Administration of Customs showed that China exported 9.98 million mt of steel in November 2025, an increase of 198,000 mt MoM, up 2.0% MoM. Cumulative exports from January to November reached 107.717 million mt, up 6.7% YoY.

During the survey period from December 2 to December 8, both the operating rate and capacity utilization rate of rebar rolling lines at steel mills in the Central China region declined; similarly, the operating rate and capacity utilization rate of wire rod rolling lines also decreased.

Last week, Chinese steel futures held up well, influenced by macro sentiment regulation, and steel export offers also strengthened. However, after the rise, most overseas customers had low acceptance, making it difficult to ship. This week, prices pulled back again. Current Chinese HRC export offers are $462-465/mt; billet export offers are $436-439/mt. With the overseas Christmas holiday approaching, market inquiries have noticeably weakened over the past two weeks, and overall transactions have also been lower than before. Based on SMM export order intake, the 21 exporters surveyed by SMM this cycle took approximately 415,000 mt in new export orders, down 20.05% WoW from the previous week's orders. The 31 exporters took approximately 645,200 mt in new export orders (new caliber), down 18.46% WoW from the previous week's orders.

Iron ore experienced a weak and volatile trend today, with the main contract I2605 closing at 760.5, down by 1.43% compared to the previous trading day. Traders adjusted their shipments according to market conditions,

[SMM Analysis]Supported by demand, the operating rate of secondary aluminum producers remains high, but constrained by multiple factors, the operating rate of secondary aluminum alloy is expected to decline slightly in December.

SMM Analysis: In November 2025, the operating rate of Chinese copper foil enterprises was 86.30%, up 2.08 percentage points MoM and up 10.82 percentage points YoY...