[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] News-Driven Disturbances Pushed SS Futures Higher to Test the Upside, Confidence in the Stainless Steel Spot Market Gradually Recovered SMM News, March 24: SS futures rose strongly. Affected by market fluctuations triggered by news of geopolitical conflict yesterday, SS futures rose sharply in the night session, and the daytime session maintained a fluctuating but relatively strong trend, closing at 14,290 yuan/mt by midday. In the spot market, boosted by the sharp rise in SS futures, market confidence somewhat recovered; although the increase in traders' spot quotations was limited, both inquiries and transactions showed signs of recovery during the week. The current market is heavily disturbed by news factors, and changes in the geopolitical conflict still need close attention. The most-traded SS futures contract strengthened and moved higher. At 10:15 a.m., SS2605 was quoted at 14,305 yuan/mt, up 125 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi were in the range of 115-315 yuan/mt. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coils in Wuxi rose by 50 yuan/mt; for cold-rolled trim-edge 304/2B coils, the average price in Wuxi rose by 50 yuan/mt, while the average price in Foshan was unchanged; cold-rolled 316L/2B coils in Wuxi were unchanged; for hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coils, Wuxi quotations were unchanged; cold-rolled 430/2B coils in both Wuxi and Foshan were also unchanged. As the market entered the traditional peak consumption season of "Golden March and Silver April," although the stainless steel market ushered in a seasonal recovery window, end-use demand fell short of expectations, downstream wait-and-see sentiment gradually intensified, and the procurement side only maintained a restocking pace for rigid demand, with none of the transaction momentum typically seen in the peak season emerging. The market's view on stainless steel prices...

[SMM Stainless Steel Daily Review] SS Futures Stopped Falling and Rebounded, Stainless Steel Spot Quotations Rose in Tandem SMM News, March 20: SS futures stopped falling and rebounded. Base metals futures generally recovered, with SS futures showing particularly strong performance and basically recouping this week’s losses, closing at 14,160 yuan/mt by the midday close. In the spot market, driven by the strong rebound in SS futures and coupled with stainless steel mill agents’ efforts to hold prices firm, stainless steel retail quotations also moved higher accordingly; supported by improving market sentiment, both inquiry activity and trading picked up. High-grade NPI prices remained in the doldrums, and the steel mill tender price for high-carbon ferrochrome was announced below market expectations, leaving weak cost support for stainless steel. The most-traded SS futures contract stopped falling and recovered. At 10:15 a.m., SS2605 was quoted at 14,150 yuan/mt, up 220 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Spot premiums for 304/2B in Wuxi were in the 220-420 yuan/mt range. In the spot market, the average price of cold-rolled 201/2B coil in Wuxi rose by 50 yuan/mt; for cold-rolled trimmed 304/2B coil, the average price in Wuxi rose by 100 yuan/mt, and the average price in Foshan rose by 50 yuan/mt; cold-rolled 316L/2B coil in Wuxi was flat; hot-rolled 316L/NO.1 coil quotations in Wuxi were unchanged; cold-rolled 430/2B coil in both Wuxi and Foshan held steady. Entering the traditional September-October peak season, although the stainless steel market ushered in a seasonal recovery window, end-use demand fell short of expectations, downstream wait-and-see sentiment gradually intensified, and procurement only...

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Novak said in a statement that he assured the Hungarian foreign minister that there would be no interruption to the flow of gas through the TurkStream gas pipeline.

Tesla's Berlin factory resumes full production On February 12 local time, Tesla's Berlin factory has resumed full production as planned. Earlier, the blockade of the Red Sea-Maned Strait frontline by Houthi forces caused shipping between Asia and Europe to bypass the Suez Canal and instead take the Cape of Good Hope route. As Tesla's production in the Berlin factory relies on components and batteries from China, it was also affected and had to be shut down for two weeks. Earlier, according to Reuters, the weekly production capacity of the Berlin factory had risen to 6,000 vehicles, so the production interruption this time caused a potential loss of about 12,000 vehicles.

[Underground Operations at Kakula Mine Suspended Again; Ivanhoe and Zijin Advance Remediation Efforts] According to latest announcement from Ivanhoe Mines, underground mining activities at Kakula Mine were suspended again on Saturday, May 25, 2025, following intermittent seismic activity in recent days. All employees have been safely evacuated, and mobile equipment has been withdrawn from the mine. Seismic events may persist for several weeks, limiting access to the underground workings and prolonging the temporary shutdown. Ivanhoe President and CEO Marna Cloete stated, “While underground mining at Kakula is temporarily halted, our focus is on maintaining water management infrastructure and accelerating the procurement of surface dewatering equipment. We have sufficient flexibility to continue supplying the Kakula concentrators from surface stockpiles and may temporarily redeploy personnel and equipment to the Kamoa Mine.” Surface infrastructure at Kakula—including Phase 1 and Phase 2 concentrators and the direct-to-blister smelter—remains unaffected. Both concentrators are currently processing ore from stockpiles. Operations at the Kamoa underground mine and the adjacent Phase 3 concentrator continue without interruption. The 2025 production and cost guidance for the Kamoa-Kakula project, along with the ramp-up schedule for the smelter, have been withdrawn pending further assessment. Ivanhoe and Zijin remain committed to restoring operations as soon as it's safe to do so.

Rio Tinto announced its production performance for the first quarter of 2023.