[SMM Weekly Manganese Ore Review] Miners' offers remain firm, spot prices rise

As of Friday this week, in northern ports: Australian lump ore was priced at 39.7-40.2 yuan/mtu, up 0.50% WoW from last Friday; South African semi-carbonate ore was priced at 33.9-34.4 yuan/mtu, up 0.29% WoW from last Friday; Gabonese ore was priced at 38-38.8 yuan/mtu, up 0.26% WoW from last Friday; South African high-iron ore was priced at 29.3-29.6 yuan/mtu, unchanged from last Friday; South African medium-iron ore was priced at 33.7-34.2 yuan/mtu, up 0.59% WoW from last Friday.

In southern ports: Australian lump ore was priced at 39.7-40.2 yuan/mtu, up 0.50% WoW from last Friday; South African semi-carbonate ore was priced at 34-34.5 yuan/mtu, up 0.29% WoW from last Friday; Gabonese ore was priced at 38.8-39.3 yuan/mtu, unchanged from last Friday; South African high-iron ore was priced at 28.7-29.2 yuan/mtu, up 0.7% WoW from last Friday; South African medium-iron ore was priced at 34-34.5 yuan/mtu, up 0.59% WoW from last Friday.

Recently, the manganese ore market has been fluctuating at highs, with quotes remaining firm. Spot prices are expected to rise steadily in the short term. The specific reasons are as follows: Firstly, HBIS Group set the July SiMn price at 5,850 yuan/mt this week, an increase of 250 yuan/mt from the inquiry price, boosting market confidence in the manganese ore market. Secondly, the futures prices of downstream SiMn have been favorable, oscillating around 5,800 yuan/mt. Today, SM2509 closed at 5,804 yuan, up 0.52%, which has a positive impact on market sentiment in the manganese ore market. Thirdly, at the initial stage of the implementation of the "anti-rat race" policy, the market has entered the 2.0 era of supply-side reform, with a relatively positive macro sentiment in the short term. In the overseas market, UMK announced its manganese ore offers to China for August 2025, with South African semi-carbonate ore priced at $3.9/mtu, an increase of $0.05/mtu from the previous round. It is understood that market acceptance has been average. From the downstream perspective, SiMn plants continue to make just-in-time procurement of manganese ore, without large-scale stockpiling. The future spot prices of manganese ore still need to be closely monitored.