[SMM Daily Commentary: Futures Market Experiences Weak Oscillation, Steel Mills May Initiate Third Round of Price Reductions This Week]

Today, coking coal futures experienced weak oscillations, and transactions in the spot market remained sluggish. Due to the continued downturn in the end-user steel market, steel mills have sustained losses, leading to suppressed demand for downstream coke, and coking enterprises hold strong bearish sentiments. Coupled with the fact that after two rounds of price cuts for coke, coking enterprises generally incurred minor losses, resulting in overall weak raw material procurement. Looking ahead, since there are still expectations of further price reductions for coke, it is difficult for coking enterprises to see improvements in procurement in the short term. Therefore, it is expected that coking coal prices will continue to weaken in the short term.