SMM Price Outlook for Base Metals on SHFE (May 26, 2017)

The operating rate of secondary copper rod was 11.83% in August 2026, higher than the expected 10.26%, up 1.57 percentage points MoM but down 16.5 percentage points YoY. In August 2026, the average price difference between copper cathode rod and secondary copper rod stayed high at 1,450-1,874 yuan/mt throughout the month. The average discount of secondary copper rod in Jiangxi against copper futures fluctuated between 722 yuan/mt and 1,418 yuan/mt,...

Rio Tinto said it has secured Indigenous consent for its Winu copper-gold project in Western Australia, allowing the project to move forward. The company said it has established a long-term partnership with Nyangumarta Warrarn Aboriginal Corporation (NWAC) covering development of the mine on Nyangumarta country. The agreement builds on a project planning agreement signed in 2023, setting out how Nyangumarta people and Rio Tinto will work together as planning advances, including measures to avoid impacts on the environment and Indigenous cultural heritage.

At the 2026 semi-annual results briefing held on September 11, Chengtun Mining stated that the current elevated debt ratio is mainly a phased result of the company's investment in high-quality copper, gold, and silver mine resources in China and overseas. At present, the domestic and overseas projects have just completed the resource delivery stage. The company implements dynamic management of capital expenditure, prioritizing debt repayment and mine operations, and flexibly adjusts new investment based on metal prices. In the medium and long term, as capacity is released and operating cash flow continues to strengthen, the company has a clear target of reducing its debt ratio, steadily bringing leverage down to a reasonable level for the industry. All of the company's resource investments have undergone rigorous calculations, and the cash flow contributions from future projects can gradually absorb the debt.