SMM, January 10:
This week, the operating rate of die-casting zinc alloy recorded 62.29%, up 4.89 percentage points WoW. Raw material side, zinc prices trended downward this week, prompting die-casting zinc alloy enterprises to restock and purchase raw materials, leading to an increase in raw material inventory on a WoW basis. The rise in the operating rate of die-casting zinc alloy this week was mainly attributed to the continued decline in zinc prices recently, which encouraged end-user enterprises to restock at lower prices. This resulted in the consumption of previously stocked inventory by die-casting zinc alloy plants, driving them to restock again, thereby pushing up the overall operating rate. Additionally, some die-casting zinc alloy plants plan to suspend production for holidays soon. With the current decline in zinc prices, their stocking demand has been stimulated. In terms of downstream orders, recent orders for automotive hardware, bathroom hardware, and other small hardware have improved due to price-driven effects, and end-user enterprises have also shown stocking demand. Currently, the overall center of zinc prices is trending downward. However, as many enterprises will enter the holiday phase next week, the operating rate is expected to gradually decline.
