[Operating Rates Down Over 20 Percentage Points MoM, Die-Casting Zinc Alloy Enters Chinese New Year Lull] This week, operating rates of die-casting zinc alloy producers fell sharply, mainly due to concentrated holiday arrangements at large plants during the week, leading to a sharp drop in operating rates. It is expected that next week, enterprises still in production will also arrange holidays successively by the end of this week, and operating rates of die-casting zinc alloy producers will decline further...

[SMM Magnesium Morning Conference Summary: Domestic Magnesium Market Remained Stable Before Chinese New Year, Primary Magnesium and Magnesium Alloy Prices Stabilized in the Short Term] Yesterday, domestic primary magnesium market quotations remained stable. As the Chinese New Year approached, smelters showed a weak willingness to sell. Pre-holiday stockpiling for domestic trade was largely completed downstream, and spot transactions were sluggish, with most deals being futures orders. In foreign trade, forward tender orders for delivery by the end of March had already been initiated in the first half of the month. It is expected that primary magnesium prices will remain stable within the range of 16,400 yuan/mt before the Chinese New Year. Magnesium alloy market prices were also steady, with mainstream tax-inclusive ex-factory prices at 18,600-18,800 yuan/mt and FOB prices at $2,600-2,650/mt. Enterprises had completed raw material stockpiling and maintained normal production, while downstream die-casting and end-users were gradually entering holidays. Market supply and demand maintained a tight balance, and short-term price stability is expected to continue.

Utah paid $30 million for a bankrupt magnesium plant—but not the $100 million cleanup. Its toxic legacy seeps toward the Great Salt Lake, unpaid. Across the Atlantic, Austria’s LKR cracked magnesium’s code: alloy ZAX210 now shapes into wire for medical implants and 3D printing. Two faces of the same metal: one buried in liability, the other alight with possibility.

[SMM Cast Aluminum Alloy Morning Comment: Market Enters Holiday Mode with Prices Mainly Stable, Post-Holiday Recovery Awaited] Post-holiday price trends will return to the interplay between supply-demand and cost factors. If enterprises maintain a normal pace of production resumptions while downstream order recovery falls short of expectations, the price center risks declining under pressure. If phased restocking occurs after the holiday, coupled with primary aluminum prices holding up well, ADC12 prices are expected to see a corrective rebound. Overall, before end-use demand shows substantial improvement, prices are likely to maintain a fluctuating trend in the initial post-holiday period, still moving within the pre-holiday range, with direction depending on the strength of demand recovery and the performance of primary aluminum prices.

SMM February 13: Waste lead-acid battery enterprises entered the holiday period, and the recycling market nearly halted. During the week, a few recyclers cleared inventory and arranged shipments to smelters; smelters that maintained purchasing planned to reduce their purchase prices for waste electric batteries by 50-100 yuan/mt by the end of this week. Trading activity in the lead market is expected to drop to a freezing point next week, with recycling enterprises projected to resume operations after the Lantern Festival. Trading sentiment in the secondary crude lead market was relatively cold during the week, with both offers and inquiries sparse. As of February 13, 2026, domestic secondary crude lead was offered ex-factory, excluding tax, at around 15,350 yuan/mt. Downstream refined lead and alloy smelters had basically entered the holiday, with only a few enterprises buying the dip. After the holiday, overseas lead ingot shipments to China resumed, and attention is focused on the demand-side recovery of China's secondary crude lead market. 》Order to View SMM Metal Spot Historical Prices

In summary, during the 2026 Chinese New Year period, the five segments of the aluminum industry chain exhibited differentiated operational trends.