[SMM Daily Brief Review of Coking Coal and Coke] In terms of supply, with costs remaining high, most coke producers saw wider losses and began to push for a coke price hike, but losses remained within an acceptable range, and coke production stayed stable. On the demand side, steel trading improved somewhat, steel mills became more willing to produce, and daily average hot metal production continued to increase, further boosting rigid demand for coke. Overall, coke fundamentals shifted toward tightness, but steel mills showed only average acceptance of higher coke prices, and the coke market may remain generally stable with slight rise in the short term.

On March 25, the SMM average price of battery-grade nickel sulphate remained stable.

[SMM Midday Tin Commentary: Improving Macro Sentiment Drove a Rebound in Tin Prices, While Follow-Through in Spot Transactions Remained Limited]

JSW Steel reported a 2% year-on-year decline in consolidated crude steel production for February 2026, totaling 2.366 million tonnes. The decrease is primarily attributed to the ongoing temporary shutdown of Blast Furnace 3 at its Vijayanagar facility, which has been offline for capacity modernization since late 2025. Despite the impact of the maintenance work, the company's Indian operations achieved a high capacity utilization rate of 97% when excluding the affected furnace, demonstrating strong underlying operational performance.

Italy’s crude steel production increased by 8.1% month-on-month in February 2026, signaling a recovery in Southern European industrial activity. This rebound follows a period of stabilization and reflects improved demand from domestic manufacturing and construction sectors as energy price volatility subsides. The increase in output from Italian mills contributes to a moderately positive outlook for non-Chinese steel demand in 2026, which is projected to grow as interest rates decline and borrowing costs for major infrastructure projects soften globally.

[SMM Daily Chrome Commentary: Cost Support Kept Offers Firm, with Limited Recent Market Fluctuations] March 25, 2026: Chrome ore quotations saw no adjustment, while low- and micro-carbon ferrochrome prices were raised somewhat...