The Most-Traded SHFE Tin Contract Opened Slightly Lower in Night Session, China Spot Trades Pace Slowed Down [SMM Tin Morning Brief]

SMM Tin Morning Brief, June 4, 2026:

Futures: The most-traded SHFE tin contract opened slightly lower during the night session and then moved sideways, closing at 445,000 yuan/mt, down 0.68%.

Macro: (1) A global shortage of memory chips triggered by the AI boom is posing growing risks to industries ranging from automakers to medical device producers, according to a coalition of US business groups that has urged the Trump administration to help increase the supply of these critical parts. On Wednesday, nine trade associations representing various industries sent a letter to US Treasury Secretary Bessent and Commerce Secretary Lutnick, warning that memory chip shortages could disrupt critical supply chains and potentially push up consumer goods prices in the short term. The coalition noted that the expansion of AI data centers has consumed a disproportionate share of memory chip capacity, resulting in "unprecedented surges in memory chip prices and significant reductions in memory chip supply for manufacturing and consumer markets." In the letter, the industry groups urged the Trump administration to work with memory chip manufacturers and chip buyers to expand capacity within the US and its allies' jurisdictions. They also suggested leveraging trade agreement mechanisms or CHIPS Act-related plans to secure supply chains, with a focus on ensuring supply across all market segments. (2) SpaceX, owned by Musk, disclosed in a filing with the SEC on Wednesday that the company plans to fix the offering price at $135 per share (consistent with the price revealed by sources) before formally launching its IPO roadshow. SpaceX stated that the company plans to issue 555.6 million shares to raise $75 billion. Typically at this stage of the IPO process, issuers set a price range to test market demand sensitivity at different price levels. However, SpaceX adopted a more unique pricing strategy. At $135 per share, SpaceX's valuation would reach $1.77 trillion. This valuation would make SpaceX the seventh-largest publicly listed firm in the US by market capitalization, surpassing Tesla's current valuation of approximately $1.6 trillion. SpaceX plans to officially list on the Nasdaq exchange on June 12.

Fundamentals: (1) Supply side: Most smelters are focused on stable production in June. (2) Demand side: Downstream purchasing remained cautious, with procurement based on order conditions.

Spot market: Yesterday, as futures prices exceeded 450,000 yuan/mt again, the pace of spot trades in China slowed down. Mainstream brand quotations were collectively adjusted downward, but the actual stimulus was limited, with only sporadic rigid demand.

[Data Source Statement: Data other than public information is derived from public information, market communication, and SMM's internal database models, processed by SMM for reference only and does not constitute decision-making advice. The information provided is for reference only. This article does not constitute direct advice for investment research decisions. Clients should make decisions prudently and not replace their own independent judgment with this information. Any decisions made by clients are unrelated to SMM.]