SMM Steel, February 24 – According to SMM statistics, the estimated total shipments to mainstream markets this week reached 302,700 mt, up 50.90% WoW. By market:

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Fluctuated, Rising First and Then Falling, While Spot Quotes Edged Lower and Transactions Recovered SMM News, March 17: SS futures moved sideways. During the day, SS futures rose first and then fell, overall maintaining a sideways movement pattern, and closed at 14,155 yuan/mt by the midday break. In the spot market, although SS futures were relatively strong in the morning, affected by the previous cuts in guidance prices by major stainless steel mills, trader quotes still edged slightly lower than yesterday. However, market sentiment had stabilized somewhat, and amid the price pullback, both inquiries and transactions increased to some extent. The most-traded SS futures contract fluctuated. As of 10:15 a.m., SS2605 was quoted at 14,220 yuan/mt, up 175 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi stood at 200-400 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coils in Wuxi fell by 50 yuan/mt; for cold-rolled trim-edge 304/2B coils, the average price in Wuxi fell by 50 yuan/mt, and the average price in Foshan also fell by 50 yuan/mt; cold-rolled 316L/2B coils in Wuxi were basically stable; hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coils were quoted basically stable in Wuxi; cold-rolled 430/2B coils in both Wuxi and Foshan were basically stable. As the traditional peak consumption season of "Golden March and Silver April" began, the stainless steel market entered a window for demand recovery, with downstream end-users gradually recovering. Recently, activity in inquiries and purchases increased markedly, but stainless steel spot prices overall remained basically stable, with no obvious fluctuations. End-user procurement was still mainly driven by rigid demand, and the full bustle of the peak season had yet to emerge, ...

Recently, Chengdu Xinyan Hydrogen Energy Technology Co., Ltd. completed the batch delivery of 48 hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks in the 49-mt class, marking not only a major breakthrough in the market-oriented deployment of the enterprise’s hydrogen-powered commercial vehicles, but also demonstrating its strength in large-scale operations and further accelerating Chengdu’s hydrogen energy industry toward commercialization and clustering. The delivered vehicles were manufactured by Sinotruk Chengshang and equipped with the large-power hydrogen fuel cell system independently developed by Chengdu Xinyan. With high reliability and strong load-bearing capacity, they are well suited to trunk logistics and bulk transportation scenarios. Combined with local hydrogen refueling network support and Sichuan’s expressway toll reduction and exemption policies, they can provide clients with a green, efficient, and low-cost transportation solution. As a core period of the “Chengdu-Chongqing Hydrogen Corridor,” Chengdu is accelerating the development of an ecological system spanning the entire industry chain of “production, storage, transportation, refueling, and application.” Multiple provincial- and municipal-level policies are supporting the promotion of hydrogen-powered vehicles. The operation of these heavy-duty trucks will further drive coordinated development across the upstream and downstream industry chain and foster a virtuous industrial cycle. As hydrogen energy has become a hot topic at this year’s national Two Sessions, with the industry focusing on the large-scale application of fuel cell vehicles, Chengdu Xinyan’s delivery responds to the national strategy with concrete action, supports Chengdu in building a highland for the hydrogen energy industry in western China, and injects new momentum into the region’s green transformation.

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Fell Back as Steel Mill Price Adjustments Dampened Downstream Buying Interest SMM News, March 16: SS futures showed a downward pullback. Although the contract was relatively stable during Friday's night session, Monday's open was dragged lower by a broad decline across the nonferrous metals sector, with SS also pulling back to close at 14,185 yuan/mt by midday. In the spot market, affected by the decline in SS futures and an overall cut of 200 yuan/mt in the morning guidance prices from a major stainless steel mill, retail quotations in the market edged lower. Price fluctuations fueled stronger wait-and-see sentiment among downstream buyers, and intraday transactions were weak. However, market feedback indicated that transactions had been broadly steady earlier, and coupled with relatively strong expectations for the cost side of stainless steel, most market participants had not expected this round of price cuts. Traders' spot quotations fell by less than the reduction in the guidance price. The most-traded SS futures contract pulled back after falling. As of 10:15 a.m., SS2605 was quoted at 14,045 yuan/mt, down 230 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for Wuxi 304/2B were in the range of 245-445 yuan/mt. In the spot market, Wuxi cold-rolled 201/2B coils were generally stable; for cold-rolled trim-edge 304/2B coils, the average price in Wuxi fell by 50 yuan/mt and the average price in Foshan fell by 50 yuan/mt; Wuxi cold-rolled 316L/2B coils were stable; Wuxi quotations for hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coils were stable; cold-rolled 430/2B coils in both Wuxi and Foshan were also stable. As the traditional peak consumption season of "Golden March and Silver April" begins, the stainless steel market is entering a window for demand recovery, with downstream end-users gradually resu...

[SMM Analysis] Freight Rates Surge, Making Deals Difficult for Steel Expor ters Affected by the US-Iran conflict, tight energy supply and sharply higher fuel costs, compounded by exchange rate fluctuations, have continuously pushed up China's export offers in recent days. Compared with the beginning of the month (March 6), SMM HRC prices have been raised by $9/mt; galvanizing prices rose by $11/mt; CRC rose by $5/mt; billet rose by $6/mt; and rebar rose by $6/mt. However, looking back at market transaction performance, deals weakened again recently. According to the SMM survey, ocean freight rates surged sharply, with current freight to the Middle East as high as $50-60. Most outside China clients remained on the sidelines; shipowners also refused to commit tonnage while waiting for the market to stabilize. For China exporters, there were offers but no market, making shipments difficult. Meanwhile, market sources said Hadeed, the GCC's only flat steel producer, raised its May hot-rolled coil (HRC) prices, still related to shipping restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz. HRC cargoes previously booked from China and other origins were also being redirected to the west coast, mainly heading to Jeddah Port, bringing high inland transportation costs. As for global steel prices, in India, in addition to rising raw material costs and rupee depreciation, a sudden LNG energy shortage further pushed up production costs, forcing steel mills to maintain a strong willingness to hold prices firm despite the traditional domestic off-season and blocked exports. In the Southeast Asian market, price increases were accepted entirely passively, mainly due to the rigid pass-through of high ocean freight rates by overseas suppliers. Although Southeast Asian buyers hesitated to take orders, they had no choice but to passively accept the increases against the backdrop of persistently high geopolitical logistics costs. At the same time, CIS export offers also rose significantly, benefiting from the intensifying geopolitical conflict in the Middle East and the resulting short-term global supply tightens. In the Middle East market, meanwhile, as war tensions continued to escalate, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz completely disrupted transportation, while freight rates and delivery uncertainty pushed the sheets & plates import markets in the UAE and Saudi Arabia into a complete standstill. Copyright and Intellectual Property Statement: This report is independently created or compiled by SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "SMM"), and SMM legally enjoys complete copyright and related intellectual property rights. The copyright, trademark rights, domain name rights, commercial data information property rights, and other related intellectual property rights of all content contained in this report (including but not limited to information, articles, data, charts, pictures, audio, video, logos, advertisements, trademarks, trade names, domain names, layout designs, etc.) are owned or held by SMM or its related right holders. The above rights are strictly protected by relevant laws and regulations of the People's Republic of China, such as the Copyright Law of the People's Republic of China, the Trademark Law of the People's Republic of China, and the Anti-Unfair Competition Law of the People's Republic of China, as well as applicable international treaties. Without prior written authorization from SMM, no institution or individual may: 1. Use all or part of this report in any form (including but not limited to reprinting, modifying, selling, transferring, displaying, translating, compiling, disseminating); 2. Disclose the content of this report to any third party; 3. License or authorize any third party to use the content of this report; 4. For any unauthorized use, SMM will legally pursue the legal responsibilities of the infringer, demanding that they bear legal responsibilities including but not limited to contractual breach liability, returning unjust enrichment, and compensating for direct and indirect economic losses. Data Source Statement: (Except for publicly available information, other data in this report are derived from publicly available information (including but not limited to industry news, seminars, exhibitions, corporate financial reports, brokerage reports, data from the National Bureau of Statistics, customs import and export data, various data published by major associations and institutions, etc.), market exchanges, and comprehensive analysis and reasonable inferences made by the research team based on SMM's internal database models. This information is for reference only and does not constitute decision-making advice. SMM reserves the final interpretation right of the terms in this statement and the right to adjust and modify the content of the statement according to actual circumstances.

[SMM Tin Commentary: The SHFE Tin Contract Consolidated Near the 370,000 Level, with Market Sentiment Remaining Predominantly Cautious Ahead of the Interest Rate Cut Decision]