The Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract Rebounded Volatilely After Opening Sharply Lower in the Night Session, While Downstream Enterprises Remained Relatively Cautious in Their Purchases [SMM Tin Morning Brief]

SMM Tin Morning Briefing, March 12, 2026:

Futures: After opening sharply lower in the night session, the most-traded SHFE tin contract fluctuated higher to around 390,000 yuan and closed at 391,610 yuan/mt, down 1.37%.

Macro: (1) Tech reporter Gurman wrote that Apple (AAPL.O) is about to launch a foldable iPhone this autumn, which will update the iOS operating system to deliver an iPad-like interface layout for the first time. According to people familiar with the matter, the product will be equipped with a built-in foldable display about the size of an iPad mini. It will also be equipped with an external screen comparable in size to the display of a small iPhone. Its internal display will adopt a widescreen ratio, differing from the narrow-screen format of foldable phones currently on the market. Sources said this will become a key selling point. Apple’s design aims to make the device more appealing for video viewing. At the same time, developers will also be able to redesign iPhone applications more easily, bringing them closer to the operating experience of iPad software. (2) Meta announced on Wednesday four in-house chips tailored for artificial intelligence-related tasks, as part of the company’s large-scale data center expansion plan. The first new chip, MTIA 300, was deployed several weeks ago to help train relatively small AI models supporting Meta’s core ranking and recommendation tasks. The upcoming MTIA 400, MTIA 450, and MTIA 500 chips are intended to handle more advanced inference tasks related to generative AI, such as generating images and videos based on user text prompts.

Fundamentals: (1) Supply side: In March, most smelters are expected to gradually resume production and operations, ending their holiday status. (2) Demand side: Downstream procurement remained cautious. Downstream enterprises are expected to gradually resume production and operations, but orders were relatively mediocre.

Spot market: After prices rebounded to the 390,000-400,000 yuan range, willingness to follow up in the spot market was limited, and most downstream enterprises mainly focused on digesting inventories and staying on the sidelines. Solder enterprises and the electronics industry generally maintained a strategy of small-batch follow-up purchases. As some downstream procurement demand had already been released during the earlier price decline, the current focus was mainly on digesting inventories and stabilizing production schedules.

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