The Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract Fluctuated Upward During the Night Session Before Staying High in a Sideways Range; Downstream Enterprises Showed Weak Purchase Willingness [SMM Tin Morning Brief]

SMM Tin Morning Brief, April 10, 2026:

Futures: The most-traded SHFE tin contract fluctuated upward during the night session and then stayed high in sideways trading.

Macro: (1) Three sources said that AI giant Anthropic is exploring the possibility of designing its own chips. The company and its competitors are working to address a shortage of AI chips, which are critical for powering and developing more advanced AI systems. Sources revealed that Anthropic's plan is still in its early stages, and the company may ultimately choose to purchase AI chips rather than design them in-house. The company has not yet determined a specific design plan or assembled a dedicated team for the project. Anthropic uses a variety of chips, including Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) designed by Google (GOOG.O) and chips from Amazon (AMZN.O), to develop and run its AI model Claude. (2) OpenAI told investors this week that its early aggressive efforts to increase computing resources gave it a key advantage over Anthropic, which is continuously scaling up and considering a potential IPO. After Anthropic released a more powerful AI model called Mythos, OpenAI sent a memo to some investors stating that it had surpassed Anthropic by "rapidly and consistently" increasing computing power to support broader adoption of its software. The memo noted that this ambitious infrastructure buildout plan has enabled OpenAI to better meet the growing demand for AI products, despite criticism of its excessive costs.

Fundamentals: (1) Supply side: Most smelters focused on maintaining stable production in April. (2) Demand side: Downstream procurement remained cautious, with purchases made based on order conditions.

Spot market: Although futures pulled back yesterday, the overall absolute price center remained at a relatively high level. Downstream enterprises showed weak purchase willingness, mostly maintaining a wait-and-see attitude and consuming existing inventory.

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