Northern China is the core hinterland of China's cable industry, leveraging its industrial heritage, full-chain supporting facilities, and favorable policies from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development to build a comprehensive industrial cluster integrating raw material processing, cable production, new material R&D, and intelligent equipment manufacturing. The regional cable industry’s annual output value exceeds 100 billion yuan, supported by a solid industrial foundation and vast market space. Compared to the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta advantage industry clusters, the northern cable industry still faces shortcomings such as scattered industrial resources, weak industry-academia-research linkages, and insufficient risk resilience of the industry chain. Breaking through collaboration barriers is key to industry quality improvement. will be held on July 23-24, 2026 at Crowne Plaza Qingdao Jinshui, Shandong . The conference focuses on three major themes: industrial collaboration, green intelligence, and globalization. SMM joins hands with Baotou Zhenxiong Copper Industry Co., Ltd. to invite merchants from the entire industry chain to gather, deeply explore industry opportunities, and boost the quality and upgrade of the northern cable industry. Click to attend, and we look forward to meeting you at the conference. Baotou Zhenxiong Copper Industry Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Baotou Zhenxiong) was registered and established in June 2015 in Baotou Rare Earth High-tech Zone. The company’s main business focuses on R&D and production of high-precision, high-purity copper wire drawing products . Currently, it has an annual production capacity of 100,000 mt of copper rod and 40,000 mt of various copper wire conductor deep processing. Products cover pure copper conductor materials with diameters from 0.016 mm to 8 mm, as well as various alloy, tin-plated, gold-plated, silver-plated, and other copper conductor materials. In the field of R&D and production of alloy ultra-fine wires, the company has reached a leading level in China. Currently, the finest diameter of high-precision copper alloy wire products produced is 0.016 mm, equivalent to 1/5 the thickness of a human hair. Its independently developed high-purity, low-resistance new high-conductivity material products have won the honorary title of the first batch of new materials in the autonomous region for two consecutive years. It is the only high-tech enterprise in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region engaged in the R&D and manufacturing of high-purity, high-precision copper conductors. The company’s products are widely used downstream in high-end fields such as precision electronic components, medical devices, aviation, automotive electronics, communications, gaming consoles, industrial robots, ships, deep-sea cables, and drilling. Since its establishment, the company has maintained excellent operating performance. In 2024, its sales volume was 72,000 mt, revenue was 5.12 billion yuan, a YoY increase of 45.22%. Since its establishment, the company has been committed to deep R&D and deep processing of new copper conductor materials, continuously improving and innovating. Currently, it has obtained 3 invention patents and 20 utility model patents. Meanwhile, the company emphasizes systematic management and has successively obtained the following certifications: ISO 9001:2015 international quality management system certification; ISO 14001:2015 environmental management system certification; ISO 45001:2018 occupational health and safety management system certification; ISO 50001 energy management system certification; IATF 16949:2016 international quality management system certification for the automotive industry; and ISO 14021:2016 recycled content verification statement. In November 2019, it passed the Level 3 safety production standardization certification. In 2018, the company was recognized as a "High-Tech Enterprise," and in the same year, it was honored as an "Outstanding Private Enterprise of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region." In 2019, the company's R&D center was rated as the autonomous region-level "New Copper Conductor Materials" R&D center. In 2020, it was designated as a pilot construction unit for Baotou's "Zero-Waste City" initiative and a "Green Factory." In June 2020, it was recognized as an autonomous region-level "Green Factory" enterprise and a "Specialized and Sophisticated" small and medium-sized enterprise in the autonomous region. In 2021, it was recognized as an Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level enterprise technology center and was honored with the Baotou City Integrity Enterprise title. In December 2021, the company was ranked 90th among the "Top 100 Private Enterprises in Inner Mongolia" and 15th among the "Top 30 Private Sci-Tech Innovation Enterprises in Inner Mongolia." In May 2022, it was recognized as the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level Copper Conductor Industrial Design Center. In September 2022, it received the title of Benchmark Demonstration Enterprise for Standard Adoption in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region for 2022. In 2023, the company's "TU1 Grade Copper Wire Rod for Electrical Applications" product was recognized as a national-level green design product. In 2024, it was recognized as an Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level green supply chain management enterprise and was honored as the autonomous region-level Manufacturing Single Champion Enterprise. In 2025, it received the titles of Baotou City Gazelle Enterprise and the autonomous region-level Outstanding Sci-Tech Innovation Private Enterprise. In 2026, it passed the national green factory certification. Contact Information SMM Conference Contact Zhang Guolei 166 0190 0190 zhangguolei@smm.cn

Since 2017, Vietnam’s solar market has grown rapidly under strong policy support, especially feed-in tariff incentives. This drove fast capacity expansion but also exposed grid constraints as development outpaced transmission infrastructure. As subsidies gradually phased out, market logic shifted from policy-driven growth to energy security and system stability.

Hoa Phat’s 2025 results marked a major step-up driven by the ramp-up of Dung Quat 2, pushing crude steel output above 11 million tons and lifting earnings through higher volumes and cost dilution despite weak global steel prices. Growth was supported by stronger HRC and downstream sales, a rising export mix, and continued domestic dominance. The year also signals a strategic shift toward higher-value products and future capacity expansion into rail and special steels.

At 4:15 PM on June 8, 2026, a ladle explosion at the SMS-1 steelmaking shop of Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) — operated by Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL) — unleashed molten metal at over 1,500°C onto the working platform below Caster-2. According to a preliminary report by India's Chief Inspector of Factories, the cause was a sudden release of gas entrapped within the liquid steel, which ruptured the ladle seal before the sliding gate was opened, triggering a catastrophic spill.

By 2026, China's new energy vehicle market has evolved from an early-stage race over electric motors, batteries, and electronic controls into a systemic contest centered on battery technology roadmaps, supply chain depth, and cost-control capabilities. Leading domestic players — NIO, Li Auto, XPeng, BYD, and Leapmotor — have each charted a distinctly different path in their battery strategies. What lies beneath these divergent choices is not merely a matter of technical preference, but a reflection of fundamentally different business models, brand identities, and competitive philosophies. NIO: Anchored by Battery Swapping, Building a Multi-Supplier, Multi-Chemistry Matrix NIO's battery strategy stands apart within the industry. At its core is not the choice of a single supplier or chemistry, but rather a battery-swapping network serving as infrastructure, upwardly compatible with battery packs of varying capacities, chemistries, and suppliers. Currently, NIO's lineup runs primarily on 75 kWh and 100 kWh packs, while a higher-energy-density 150 kWh semi-solid-state pack, produced by WeLion New Energy, has already entered volume production and deployment. On the chemistry front, certain NIO models employ a hybrid cell arrangement blending ternary lithium and LFP cells — the LFP cells provide foundational range and cost advantages, while the ternary cells serve as a state-of-charge reference, addressing the well-known pain point of inaccurate SOC estimation inherent to LFP's flat voltage curve. On the supplier side, CATL has long held a core position, with CALB and WeLion also playing significant roles in the supply chain. In early 2026, NIO and CATL further signed a five-year comprehensive strategic cooperation agreement covering long-life batteries, swap-station compatibility, and overseas market expansion. For the full year 2025, NIO Group delivered 326,000 vehicles, up 46.9% year-on-year, and achieved its first quarterly operating profit in Q4 — signaling that its battery-swapping business model is beginning to enter a virtuous cycle. The ramp-up of its two sub-brands, ONVO and Firefly, has further amplified the scale effects of the swapping ecosystem, diluting the per-unit cost of infrastructure. Li Auto: EREV-Led, BEV in Pursuit — Deep Supplier Ties and the Shift Toward In-House Development Li Auto's battery strategy presents a sharp contrast to NIO's. Where NIO pursues breadth in its swapping network and flexibility in battery pack compatibility, Li Auto places greater emphasis on deep ties with top-tier suppliers and meticulous cost-side management. Li Auto's EREV models have long relied on ternary lithium batteries as their primary solution and are now progressively introducing LFP to optimize vehicle cost structures. In the pure-electric domain, the flagship MPV MEGA carries a high-performance ternary pack co-developed with CATL; in 2025, the i6 electric SUV formally adopted a dual-supplier model, sourcing from both CATL and Sunwoda for complementary supply. More significantly, in September 2025, Li Auto and Sunwoda jointly established a battery company, marking a definitive shift from a procurement relationship to one of equity-linked co-development. In May 2026, Li Auto delivered 33,350 vehicles, with the i6 surpassing 20,000 monthly deliveries for the third consecutive month and ranking among the top three electric SUVs by volume, while the EREV L-series remained its sales backbone. With "family comfort" as its core brand proposition, Li Auto's battery strategy has always served a single through-line: eliminating range anxiety while optimizing total cost of ownership — pragmatic and focused. XPeng: LFP as the Mainstay, a Three-Supplier Landscape Taking Shape, and the Dual-Powertrain Strategy Accelerating XPeng's battery strategy is centered on LFP, with a stable landscape of three core suppliers: CALB, EVE Energy, and FinDreams Battery (BYD). CALB has been one of XPeng's first-tier battery suppliers since 2021 and has long held the dominant share. In September 2025, EVE Energy formally entered XPeng's MONA series supply chain, providing prismatic cell solutions for base MONA variants, while longer-range versions continue to use BYD FinDreams cells. XPeng's technology identity has always revolved around full-stack self-developed AI — spanning advanced intelligent driving, proprietary chips, and large-model integration — which gives its battery strategy a notably pragmatic character: choose a mature, safe, and cost-controllable LFP route so that more resources can be concentrated on its core competence in intelligence. Since 2025, XPeng has fully embraced a dual-powertrain strategy of BEV plus EREV, with the addition of range-extender models introducing new variables to its battery demand structure. In May 2026, XPeng Group delivered 32,158 vehicles, with the flagship SUV GX becoming a core incremental contributor right from its debut, while the MONA series and P7+ continued to scale, validating the market appeal of its "technology for all" positioning. BYD: Full Vertical Integration as the Ultimate Moat If NIO, Li Auto, and XPeng respectively embody the brand paths of "service-driven battery swapping," "family comfort," and "technology intelligence," then BYD's defining label points squarely at vertical integration. From FinDreams battery cells and FinDreams Powertrain motors and electronic controls, to in-house IGBT and SiC power semiconductors, BYD has mastered the manufacturing of virtually every core component in a new energy vehicle — a level of supply chain depth unmatched both domestically and globally. The Blade Battery, BYD's signature technology, builds on an LFP foundation and achieves a balance of safety and energy density through structural innovation; it has now achieved scaled deployment across the entire lineup. On the cost side, the scale effects of selling 4.6 million units in 2025 have endowed BYD with extreme supply chain bargaining power. On the technology side, the "Eye of the Gods" advanced driver-assistance system has been deployed in over 2.5 million vehicles, generating more than 160 million kilometers of real-world driving data daily — a data flywheel that competitors will find difficult to replicate. In 2025, BYD's battery-electric vehicle sales reached 2.26 million units, surpassing Tesla (approximately 1.63 million) for the first time to claim the global BEV sales crown. From the Seagull at RMB 70,000 to the Yangwang at over RMB 1 million, from city commuters to hardcore off-roaders, BYD has built the world's most complete new energy product matrix, with its multi-brand strategy covering every mainstream price band and use case. Leapmotor: Full-Stack Self-Development Driving Extreme Value, Multi-Supplier Strategy Fueling the Volume Leap Leapmotor has emerged as a dark horse that can no longer be ignored among China's new-energy startups. Its battery strategy is defined by a clear formula: all-LFP plus parallel multi-sourcing, with core cell suppliers including Gotion High-Tech and CALB, among others — different batches of the same model may mix cells from different brands, but core parameters remain consistent. In November 2025, Leapmotor and CALB jointly established a battery factory, signaling Leapmotor's progression from multi-source procurement toward equity-linked core-supplier relationships. Leapmotor's true moat lies in its full-stack self-development approach — over 65% of core components are developed in-house, spanning electric drives, battery BMS, intelligent cockpits, and autonomous-driving chips. This is what enables Leapmotor to deliver extreme value in the RMB 100,000–200,000 mainstream price band. In May 2026, Leapmotor delivered 81,569 vehicles, up 81% year-on-year, holding the new-energy startup sales crown for multiple consecutive months, with the one-million-unit annual target now within reach. Leapmotor's product matrix has expanded into four series — A, B, C, and D — covering sedans, SUVs, and MPVs, while overseas exports have rapidly climbed to over 37% of total volume, becoming a second engine for growth. The Industrial Logic Behind Divergent Strategies When the battery strategies of these five automakers are examined side by side, several clear industrial patterns emerge. First, LFP's dominance in the mainstream market continues to strengthen. Whether it is BYD's Blade Battery, XPeng's all-LFP lineup, Leapmotor's extreme value proposition, or Li Auto's progressive LFP adoption in its EREV models, all point to the same trend: in the RMB 100,000–250,000 core consumption band, LFP's combined advantages in cost, safety, and cycle life have made it an unshakable baseline. Second, supply chain relationships are upgrading from simple buyer-seller transactions to capital-linked co-development. The joint ventures between Li Auto and Sunwoda, between Leapmotor and CALB, and the five-year agreement between NIO and CATL are all reflections of this trend. Third, battery strategy choices are increasingly dictated by each automaker's business model: NIO's battery-swapping system demands pack standardization and compatibility; BYD's vertical integration demands in-house production; Li Auto's EREV approach imposes unique requirements on battery capacity and cost. For participants in the upstream lithium resource and battery materials industries, understanding the battery strategies of leading automakers — and the direction in which they are evolving — is a critical entry point for gauging mid- and downstream demand structures, the cadence of technology-route shifts, and the changing landscape of supply chain dynamics. In this industrial contest that remains very much at halftime, the divergence in battery strategies not only determines each automaker's cost structure and product competitiveness, but will also profoundly reshape the value distribution across the entire lithium battery supply chain.

2026 marks the first year of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Against the backdrop of intensifying global macro volatility and China's deepening high-quality development drive, the zinc industry is undergoing profound transformations: tightness on the ore side and the release of smelting capacity are creating structural tensions, diverging domestic and international inventories reflect the complex supply-demand rebalancing, and technological innovation is emerging as a key driver to resolve these contradictions and reshape the landscape. New energy, new-type infrastructure and other priority areas of the 15th Five-Year Plan are injecting fresh momentum into traditional zinc consumption, while the green, low-carbon and circular economy is also accelerating the restructuring of the industry's logic under the impetus of technological innovation. With the collective support of upstream and downstream zinc industry enterprises, industry associations and all relevant stakeholders, the 2026 SMM Zinc Industry Conference and the 8th Hot-Dip Galvanizing Industry Development and Technological Innovation Forum, the 14th Zinc Salts, Zinc Oxide and Zinc Secondary Resources Development Forum, and the Cast Zinc Alloy Development Forum is about to be held on August 6-8 in Qingdao, Shandong. The conference is themed "Harnessing Zinc Strengths, Building the Zinc Industry, Embarking on a New Journey", with a dual driving force of macro perspectives and fundamental analysis, closely aligning with the high-quality development mainline of the 15th Five-Year Plan, and focusing on four key dimensions: macro policies, supply-demand patterns, global trade, and technological innovation. It aims to drive cost reduction and efficiency gains through technological breakthroughs, respond to market fluctuations with collaborative innovation, and jointly paint a new blueprint for the high-quality and sustainable development of the zinc industry.‌ Baoding Aoqisheng New-type Metallic Material Manufacturing Co., Ltd. will be present at this grand event, to discuss industry development trends with peers, and jointly propel the zinc industry to new heights. Click the to register now and participate in this meaningful and far-reaching industry event, and jointly create a brilliant new chapter! Established in 2012 with a registered capital of 39.8 million yuan, Baoding Aoqisheng New-type Metallic Material Manufacturing Co., Ltd. is located in Baoding, Hebei, a historic city in China, situated in the heart of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei triangle. Rooted in the galvanizing market of North China, it serves the nationwide galvanizing market. The company boasts a comprehensive management system and a quality and technical service system with full participation. It has obtained certifications including "Quality Management System ISO 9001", "Occupational Health and Safety Management System ISO 45001", and "Environmental Management System ISO 14001". Its trademarks "Baoding" and "Aoqisheng" are registered with the State Trademark Office. The company holds 7 invention patents and 37 utility model patents. Through deep cultivation in the industry, it has earned numerous prestigious provincial qualifications and honors. It has successively been recognized as a Hebei Province Sci-tech Small and Medium-sized Enterprise, Hebei Province Innovative SME, Hebei Province "Specialized, Sophisticated, Distinctive, and Innovative" SME, Hebei Province "Specialized, Sophisticated, Distinctive, and Innovative" Demonstration Enterprise, and a provincial-level manufacturing single-champion demonstration enterprise. It has established the Hebei Province Enterprise Technology Center and Hebei Province Zinc-based Alloy Innovation Center, and was honored as a Hebei Province Green Factory. In 2021, Baoding Aoqisheng New-type Metal Material Manufacturing Co., Ltd. cooperated with the National Engineering Laboratory for Advanced Metal Coating of China Iron & Steel Research Institute to build the Baoding Alloy New Material Production and Research Base project. The company enjoys high visibility in China’s hot-dip galvanizing alloy manufacturing industry. Its main products include: Zn-Al alloy, Zn-Ni alloy, multi-element rare earth alloy, Zn-Bi alloy, Zn-Sb alloy, Zn-Al-Mg alloy, and various other new-type functional zinc-based alloys. ◆ Contact Us ◆ Tel: 0312-8063789 QQ: 767 496 767 Website: www.bdags.com Address: No. 1699, Zhongxin West Road, Qingyuan District, Baoding City Long press to scan and register now 2026 SMM Zinc Conference