US Builds AI Infrastructure; Spot Market Becomes Increasingly Quiet Before the Holiday [SMM Tin Morning News]

SMM Tin Morning Brief on January 23, 2025:

At a White House briefing, Trump announced that the US would open an artificial intelligence research center, with Japan's SoftBank Group and US-based Oracle Corporation investing $500 billion to build the US AI infrastructure, which may subsequently boost tin-related demand this year. During yesterday's night session, SHFE tin prices showed a pullback trend. In the futures market, the price of the most-traded SHFE tin contract hovered at high levels, remaining at 249,000 yuan/mt. In the spot market, due to the strong performance of the futures market, spot tin prices did not decline significantly. The premiums and discounts of domestic tin ingot brands showed relatively small changes compared to recent days. Among them, small-brand tin ingots were quoted at parity to premiums of 0-200 yuan/mt against the SHFE 2502 contract, delivery brand prices were quoted at premiums of 300-800 yuan/mt against the SHFE 2502 contract, Yunnan tin brand quotations against the SHFE 2502 contract were 1,000-1,100 yuan/mt, and imported tin brand spot quotations were at discounts of 800-1,000 yuan/mt against the SHFE 2502 contract. Spot market transactions were relatively weak and are expected to remain subdued in the near term. However, market participants should remain cautious and pay attention to market dynamics and policy risks.