Exports of silicon metal rebound in May

[ADC12 price daily review: import profit margin improves, theoretical import window for aluminum alloy opens] Ex-China ADC12 offers have pulled back slightly to $3,040–3,120/mt. Supported by stronger domestic ADC12 prices and yuan appreciation, the real-time import profit margin has improved and rebounded above the break-even line. The theoretical import window has opened, and future attention should be paid to the impact of changes in ex-China offers and the exchange rate on the inflow of imported supply.

South32 Limited reported payable molybdenum production of 0.2 thousand tonnes, or about 200 tonnes, from its 45% interest in the Sierra Gorda mine for the September 2026 quarter. Output fell 75% year on year and 50% from the preceding quarter. Payable molybdenum sales were also about 200 tonnes, down 67% year on year and 60% from the preceding quarter. In contrast, payable copper production rose 2% year on year and 17% from the preceding quarter to 18,700 tonnes. South32 cited higher planned copper grades and temporary wet-weather effects but did not explain the molybdenum decline. The figures represent South32’s 45% attributable share, not total mine output or molybdenum concentrate mass.

Antofagasta Minerals’ Centinela mine and the Minera Esperanza and Distrito Centinela unions reached new three-year collective agreements approved by their members, ending the ten-day strike that began on October 7. The two unions represent 709 employees, or 22% of the mine’s directly employed workforce. The company said operational continuity and performance were maintained throughout the stoppage. No shutdown of the molybdenum recovery circuit or loss of contained-molybdenum output has been disclosed. The settlement removes the immediate escalation risk, and there is no current basis for a retrospective molybdenum-output deduction. Centinela’s 2026 contained-molybdenum guidance remains 3,000–3,500 tonnes.