SHFE tin prices opened slightly higher in the night session and continued to surge, pulling back slightly during the session. Trading in the spot market remained sluggish. [SMM Tin Morning News]

December 18, 2025 SMM Tin Morning Brief:

Futures: The most-traded SHFE tin contract (SN2601) opened slightly higher in the night session and continued to surge, pulling back slightly during the session, and closed at 334,240 yuan/mt, up 2.84% from the previous trading day.

Macro: (1) Sources revealed that Google (GOOG.O) is advancing a new plan to enhance the performance of its AI chips when running PyTorch, the world's most commonly used AI software framework, aiming to weaken Nvidia's (NVDA.O) long-term dominance in the AI computing market. Sources stated that the new plan, internally codenamed "TorchTPU," is designed to eliminate key obstacles hindering the popularization of TPU chips, making them fully compatible with PyTorch and providing a more developer-friendly experience for customers who have already built systems using PyTorch. Some sources indicated that Google is also considering open-sourcing part of the software to accelerate customer adoption. PyTorch, an open-source project strongly supported by Meta Platforms (META.O), is one of the most commonly used tools for developing AI models. (2) Chip startup Mythic Inc. raised $125 million in a new round of funding, which will be used to support the company's challenge to Nvidia (NVDA.O) in the lucrative artificial intelligence processor market. A statement on Wednesday showed that Mythic hired Nvidia veteran Taner Ozcelik as CEO last year, and this funding round was led by venture capital firm DCVC. Other investors include SoftBank Group and Honda Motor Co., among others. The company adopts a completely new approach to handling the massive amounts of data required to run artificial intelligence software. Its technology relies on analog chips, which consume significantly less power than the digital components typically used as the "brains" of computers. Ozcelik, who worked at Nvidia for a decade and whose career was deeply influenced by Nvidia co-founder and CEO Jensen Huang, said, "We have made it clear that our goal is to catch up with Nvidia."

Fundamentals: (1) Supply side: Most smelters' production is expected to be relatively stable in December. (2) Demand side: Downstream procurement is relatively cautious, and high prices are significantly suppressing actual consumption.

Spot market: Trading in the spot market was relatively sluggish yesterday, with most traders reporting transactions of only around ten mt, and a few traders reporting transactions of about one truckload. After restocking at the beginning of the week, downstream and end-user enterprises have temporarily replenished their inventory and are adopting a wait-and-see attitude towards the current market and prices.

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