[Typhoon Weather Affected Enterprise Operations, Die-Casting Zinc Alloy Operating Rates Declined] This week, the operating rate of die-casting zinc alloy enterprises declined mainly due to brief production halts at some alloy plants in east China caused by recent typhoon weather. End-user order demand side, demand across various application sectors was mediocre, mostly rigid demand with insufficient growth. Hardware, auto parts, home appliances, etc., were all in the off-season, providing insufficient support for operating rates......

This week (Jul 10-16), the operating rate of enamelled wire industry machines ... WoW

The first half of 2026 has come to an end, with China's galvanized steel sheet market facing persistent demand pressure. Most market participants reported weaker order books compared with previous years, as both domestic and export orders declined to varying degrees on a year-on-year basis. Demand performance varied significantly across downstream sectors. How did each end-use segment perform in the first half of the year? And what can be expected for the market in the second half?

Against the backdrop of aluminum price premiums being given back and heightened expectations of decline, end-users' willingness to restock will remain suppressed. Industry profit margins are expected to stay low, and competition among enterprises will evolve deeply from "scale expansion" to "cost control and structural optimization."

[SMM Analysis: “Tight Resource Balance” Meets “Computing Power Revaluation”—2026 H1 Tin Price Deep Review and H2 Outlook] In 2026 H1, tin prices exhibited a wide-ranging tug-of-war pattern of “reaching record highs—pulling back to consolidate—rallying again—consolidating at highs.” The most-traded LME tin contract surged from about $42,000/mt at the beginning of the year to a record high of $59,000/mt, pulled back to $40,500 in March, rallied again to around $58,000 from April to May, and fell below $50,000 at end-June; the most-traded SHFE tin contract surged from 330,000 yuan/mt at the beginning of the year to a record high of 470,000 yuan/mt, dipped to 322,600 yuan/mt in March, touched 451,000 yuan/mt again in early June, and pulled back below 400,000 yuan/mt at month-end.

This week (7.3-7.9), SMM weekly operating rate of brass billet sample enterprises stood at 49.96%, pulling back 0.84 percentage points WoW , with production under further pressure. Fluctuating copper prices, coupled with tight supply of recycled brass raw materials and high procurement costs, dampened enterprises' willingness to restock raw materials, as days of raw material inventories dropped to 3.8 days. Raw material turnover constraints continued to suppress output, and production edged down WoW this week. The traditional downstream off-season demand persisted, with orders for plumbing, sanitary ware, and home appliances seeing limited growth, while end-users took a wait-and-see approach to purchasing. The pace of finished product destocking was weak, as days of finished product inventories rose to 5.29 days, adding to the pressure from finished product backlogs. Looking ahead to next week (7.10-7.16), end-user off-season demand is unlikely to recover noticeably, and the situation of high-priced raw materials constraining production remains unchanged. SMM expects the industry operating rate to pull back slightly to 49.58%, extending the industry's low-level operation trend.