This week, ferrous metals were in the doldrums. The main logic during the week remained weakening cost support. On Tuesday, Iran proposed charging transit fees for the Strait of Hormuz, while Trump made conciliatory remarks, saying that “even if the Strait of Hormuz remained largely closed, he would still be willing to end military action against Iran.” Market expectations for tighter crude oil supply weakened, and declines in the energy sector dragged down the coal sector, weakening the cost-side logic. During the week, inventories of the five major steel products continued to decline, but apparent demand remained at a low level for the same period in previous years, providing limited fundamental-driven momentum to futures. In the spot market, purchasing interest was average, mainly focused on restocking at low prices. Spot prices were relatively firm, and the spot-futures price spread widened somewhat......

[SMM Daily Review: Lower Nickel Prices Loosened Quotations, Shifting Down the Price Center of High-Grade NPI] April 2 News: SMM's upstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 2.74, up 0.03 MoM, while the downstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 1.51, up 0.01 MoM.

[SMM Nickel Flash] April 1 News, Supply side, under pressure from both upstream and downstream, quotations from smelters and traders were basically flat. Demand side, buying interest from downstream steel mills remained weak, and market demand was limited. Overall, with high upstream costs and end-use product prices struggling to match, high-grade NPI prices remained in stalemate.

[SMM Daily Review: Upstream Costs and Downstream Selling Prices Remained Difficult to Match, High-Grade NPI Prices Stayed in a Stalemate] April 1 News: SMM's upstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 2.71, down 0.07 MoM, while the downstream sentiment factor for high-grade NPI was 1.5, down 0.04 MoM.

Today, spot prices of #1 copper cathode in North China against the front-month contract were reported at a discount of 120 yuan/mt to a discount of 60 yuan/mt, with the average price unchanged from the previous trading day. The average transaction price was 96,825 yuan/mt, up 1,260 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Gold is likely to continue playing an important role in central banks’ reserve portfolios in 2026. According to the World Gold Council, indications suggest that not only will already active central banks remain present in the market, but new buyers may also emerge.