[US-Iran Talks Ease, Pressuring LME Aluminum; SHFE Aluminum Destocking Support Limits Decline] In the absence of new macro bullish catalysts, SHFE aluminum tracked LME aluminum under pressure, but the decline was relatively contained by destocking in China. Going forward, close attention should be paid to: the progress of physical production resumptions at Middle Eastern aluminum enterprises after the Strait of Hormuz fully reopens for navigation; the trajectory of the US dollar after hawkish signals from the US Fed materialize and its transmission to commodities; and whether destocking in China continues to accelerate. Aluminum prices are expected to remain in the doldrums in the near term.

[Weekly Review of Aluminum Scrap and Secondary Aluminum]In May, imports of unwrought aluminum alloy hit a nearly five-year low, while exports surged explosively

SMM June 23: Metals market: Overnight, base metals on the domestic market showed mixed performance. SHFE zinc rose 0.53%, SHFE aluminum fell 0.27%, SHFE nickel rose 0.39%. SHFE tin fell 1.96%, SHFE copper edged down, SHFE lead rose 0.34%. Additionally, the most-traded alumina futures contract fell 2.63%, and the cast aluminum main contract rose 0.3%. Overnight, ferrous metals all fell. Iron ore fell 0.34%, rebar fell 0.16%. HRC fell 0.21%, stainless steel fell 1.46%. Coking coal and coke: the most-traded coking coal contract fell 0.63%, and the most-traded coke contract fell 2.81%. Overnight, on the overseas market, LME base metals mostly rose. LME copper rose 0.62%. LME aluminum fell 1.1%, LME lead rose 0.77%. LME zinc rose 1.32%. LME tin fell 0.34%. LME nickel rose 1%. Overnight, in precious metals: COMEX gold fell 0.85%, and COMEX silver fell 1.71%. Overnight, SHFE gold fell 0.18%, and SHFE silver fell 1.23%. As of 7:16 on June 23, the overnight closing prices: Macro Front China: [National Energy Group: Full-Throttle Efforts to Prepare for Peak Summer, Stabilizing Production and Increasing Output to Cement Coal Supply as Ballast] National Energy Investment Group Co., Ltd. announced in a statement that, according to forecasts by the National Climate Center, this summer's average temperature across the country will be higher than usual, with more high-temperature days than normal. National Energy Group fully leverages its integrated coal-power-chemical-transport operation advantages, makes all-out efforts across all links, and firmly shoulders the heavy responsibility of ensuring supply during the peak summer. Coal supply is the baseline support for stable electricity generation. The coal segment of National Energy Group is rapidly stabilizing and increasing production, coordinating internal and external resources, and ensuring equipment operation and maintenance, aiming for high-output and stable-supply goals to solidify the foundation of energy supply and fully support regional peak power load demand. [National Energy Group's Installed Power Generation Capacity Exceeds 400 Million kW, Accounting for About 1/10 of National Total] National Energy Group announced that its installed power generation capacity has exceeded 400 million kW, accounting for about one-tenth of the national total, playing a "pillar" role in ensuring stable national power supply and safeguarding energy security. After exceeding 300 million kW in May 2023, its installed capacity entered the 400 million kW level in June 2026, setting a new record among global energy companies for installed generation capacity. Among this, thermal power and wind power installed capacity both remain the world's largest. As of end-May 2026, National Energy Group has put into operation 65 ultra-supercritical coal-fired power units of gigawatt-class, accounting for nearly 30% of all such units in China, with its high-efficiency and clean coal power scale firmly leading the industry; at the same time, the group actively explores new development models such as integrated wind-solar-storage-hydrogen and coordinated generation-grid-load-storage, and has built new-type energy storage with a total capacity of 8.01 million kW / 19.21 million kWh, continuously enhancing its renewable energy consumption and regulation capabilities. (Xinhua) US dollar: Overnight, the US dollar index rose 0.24% to 101. Fed's Goolsbee said: Fed Chairman Walsh's approach is to reduce speculation on interest rates and reduce forward guidance; I quite agree with this approach. According to CME "FedWatch": the probability that the Fed will keep rates unchanged in July is 63.7%, and the probability of a cumulative 25bp rate hike is 36.3%. For the September meeting, the probability of keeping rates unchanged is 26.1%, a cumulative 25bp rate hike is 52.2%, and a cumulative 50bp rate hike is 21.4%. (Jinshi Data APP) Bank of America currently expects the Fed to raise interest rates three times this year, the latest sign that Wall Street is bracing for more aggressive Fed tightening. The bank's economists previously expected the Fed to hold rates steady this year. The reason for the revised forecast is strong economic data and a hawkish shift in Fed communication, suggesting the Fed will take a more proactive approach to combating inflation. Bank of America's forecast of three rate hikes remains a minority view: only 19% of market investors currently expect three hikes, though that proportion has climbed from 3% a week ago. Investors see two rate hikes this year as the most likely outcome. (Jinshi Data APP) Other currencies: [Starmer Says UK Labour Party New Leader Election to Start on July 9] UK Prime Minister Starmer said on the 22nd, when announcing his resignation, that the election for the new leader of the UK Labour Party will begin on July 9. Starmer said he has asked the Labour Party's National Executive Committee to set a timetable for the leadership election, with the nomination process to start on July 9 and be completed before the parliamentary summer recess. This means the new Labour leader will be in place before Parliament returns in September. (Xinhua) Macro front: Today, data to be released include the preliminary June manufacturing PMIs for France, Germany, the Eurozone, and the UK; the preliminary UK June services PMI; the UK June CBI industrial orders balance; the US ADP employment change for the week ending June 6; the preliminary US June S&P Global manufacturing and services PMIs; and the US June Richmond Fed manufacturing index, among others. Additionally, watch for: a speech by Bank of Canada Governor Macklem; the 17th Summer Davos Forum held in Dalian from June 23 to 25; and MSCI's release of its annual market classification review results, with South Korea expected to be placed on the watch list for developed market status. Crude oil: Overnight, both oil futures fell, with WTI down 2.33% and Brent down 2.8%. Oil prices opened higher on Monday but then turned lower. Wallstreetcn mentioned that Qatar and Pakistan issued a joint statement on Monday, announcing that the US and Iran have agreed on a mechanism to end military operations in Lebanon and have established a communication channel to ensure the safety of commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. The US Treasury Department then announced that it would allow Iran to sell oil to international markets within 60 days, as one of the conditions of the memorandum of understanding signed by both sides last week. US Vice President Vance described the first round of negotiations as "very, very smooth." (Wallstreetcn) Furthermore, Iraq's deputy oil minister for upstream affairs said in a statement on Sunday that Iraq plans to gradually restore crude oil production to between 4.2 million and 4.3 million barrels per day. ANZ Bank expects that in the first four weeks, production will return to about 2 million to 3 million barrels per day. Resumption of production still faces challenges; in Q3 2026, 2 million to 3.5 million barrels per day may be restored, provided the market is stable, while another 1 million to 2 million barrels per day of supply could be permanently or semi-permanently lost. ANZ added: "The initial production recovery will mainly come from logistics (transportation), not production. Later stages will depend on upstream production and refinery restarts. A full resumption of production is unlikely this year." (Jinshi Data APP)

[HRC] Today's HRC export price fell $1/mt day-on-day, with transaction prices at $493-502/mt. Futures were weak, and prices in some overseas markets were also low, leaving inquiries and trading activity moderate.

According to the latest release from the General Administration of Customs, SMM statistics show that China's SiMn exports in May 2026 stood at 6,188.1 mt, up 40.80% MoM and 35.85% YoY. Total exports from January to May reached 21,248.89 mt, a cumulative increase of 64.50% YoY. In terms of regional trade structure, SiMn exports were mainly destined for Indonesia.

SMM June 22 news: Metals market: As of the midday close, base metals on the domestic market mostly fell, with only SHFE aluminum rising, up 0.4%. SHFE tin led the decline with a drop of 1.31%, SHFE nickel fell 0.84%, SHFE lead and SHFE zinc both fell 0.7%, and SHFE copper edged down 0.34%. The most-traded alumina contract fell 0.52%, while the most-traded casting aluminum contract rose 0.47%. In addition, the most-traded lithium carbonate contract fell 6.08%, the most-traded polysilicon contract fell 0.25%, and the most-traded silicon metal contract fell 0.58%. The most-traded European route container shipping index futures rose 0.11%. In the ferrous metals segment, all except stainless steel rose. Stainless steel rose 0.36%, while hot-rolled coil and iron ore both fell around 0.6%. In the coking coal and coke segment, coking coal fell 2.24% and coke fell 1.78%. On the overseas market front, as of 11:38, base metals on the LME all rose, with LME nickel leading the gains at 1.23%, LME tin up 0.88%, LME copper up 0.53%, and the other metals showing relatively small fluctuations. In precious metals, as of 11:38, COMEX gold fell 1.15%, COMEX silver fell 0.73%. Domestically, SHFE gold fell 3.25% and SHFE silver fell 5.65%. In addition, the most-traded platinum contract fell 4.77% and the most-traded palladium contract fell 3.51%. As of 11:38 on June 22, selected futures midday quotes: Spot and fundamentals Zinc: Today, mainstream transaction prices for #0 zinc were concentrated in the range of 24,495-24,790 yuan/mt, Shuangyan brand mainstream transaction prices were at 24,595-24,890 yuan/mt, and #1 zinc mainstream transaction prices were at 24,425-24,720 yuan/mt. In the morning session, quotations against the SMM average price were at premiums of 10-30 yuan/mt, while no quotes were offered against the futures market. In the second trading session, quotations for ordinary domestic brands against the 2607 contract were at discounts of 40-20 yuan/mt..... Macro front Domestic aspect: [Unchanged for the 13th consecutive month! China's latest LPR quotes released: 3.5% for the over-five-year term and 3% for the one-year term.] China’s June Loan Prime Rate (LPR) was released on June 22, with both the one-year and over-five-year LPRs unchanged. The People's Bank of China authorized the National Interbank Funding Center to announce that the LPRs on June 22, 2026 were: the one-year LPR at 3.0%, and the over-five-year LPR at 3.5%. These LPRs will remain valid until the next LPR release. [During the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, cross-regional person trips nationwide are expected to exceed 650 million.] According to the Ministry of Transport, during the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday (June 19-21, 2026), the total cross-regional person trips nationwide were expected to be 652.78 million, with a daily average of 217.593 million, flat YoY. (（CCTV News） On the dollar front: As of 11:38 AM, the US dollar index rose 0.11% to 100.88, with markets continuing to monitor developments following the US-Iran talks. US federal funds rate futures extended their decline, indicating a 76% probability of a Fed rate hike in September. On June 19, Citadel Securities released a research note stating that under new Fed Chair Warsh, the Fed has shifted from inertial decision-making to proactive, adaptive policymaking. Citadel Securities warned that the market should not interpret this signal with inertial thinking. Its core assessment: the next move is a rate hike, and that hike is likely imminent. At the same time, the note stressed that the Fed will no longer continue its previous market-coddling approach of "pre-communicating policy paths". This shift holds significant implications for the interest rate market, the US dollar, and the stock market. Citadel Securities set its baseline scenario as three 25-basis-point rate hikes over the next two years, in September 2026, December 2026, and March 2027, and views the July meeting as a "live meeting", meaning action could be taken at any time. The Fed projects that core PCE inflation will average about 90 basis points above the 2% target over 2026-2027. Based on the inflation gap and classic monetary policy rules, Citadel Securities calculates that the policy rate should exceed the neutral rate by 1.5 times the inflation gap, implying an additional 135 basis points of tightening. Assuming a neutral rate of 3%, the target policy rate should fall in the 4.25%–4.50% range, corresponding to exactly three rate hikes. (Wall Street Insights) According to the CME FedWatch Tool: The probability that the Fed holds rates steady in July is 61.5%, and the probability of a cumulative 25-basis-point hike is 38.5%. For September, the probability of rates remaining unchanged is 24.9%, the probability of a cumulative 25-basis-point hike is 52.2%, and the probability of a cumulative 50-basis-point hike is 22.9%. (Jin10 Data) On the data front: Today will see the release of Canada's May CPI month-over-month rate, the Eurozone's preliminary June consumer confidence index, and other data. Furthermore, the State Council Information Office will hold a press conference on policies and measures to stabilize, improve, and optimize the utilization of foreign investment. ECB President Lagarde speaks at the European Parliament, and Fed Governor Waller delivers welcome remarks at a conference on the international role of the US dollar. Crude Oil: As of 11:38, both oil benchmarks fell together, with US crude down 0.11% and Brent crude down 1.24%. Crude oil prices experienced sharp rises and falls today. Earlier, Trump issued threats again during the negotiations, driving oil prices sharply higher. Subsequently, progress in the US-Iran peace negotiations dragged oil prices down. Qatar and Pakistan issued a joint statement on social media platform X, saying that the first round of high-level US-Iran talks concluded in Burgenstock, Switzerland. The parties agreed to establish a high-level committee. Chief negotiators will report regularly to the high-level committee and lead working groups responsible for nuclear issues, sanctions, and monitoring and dispute resolution. The high-level committee agreed on a roadmap aiming to reach a final agreement within 60 days. To avoid accidents and miscommunication and ensure the safe passage of merchant ships through the Strait of Hormuz, communication channels have been established. It was also agreed to set up a de-escalation group to ensure the implementation of the commitment to cease military operations within Lebanese territory. For the rest of the week, technical talks will continue in Burgenstock, discussing all related issues. (From Wallstreetcn APP) Ali Nizar, head of Iraq’s State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO): Currently, two vessels are loading crude oil at the country’s southern terminal, but more vessels need to enter the Strait of Hormuz for production to continue rising. (Iraq 24 TV) (From Wallstreetcn APP) Iran is shipping large volumes of oil that were previously unable to be exported due to US sanctions, potentially giving it a boost after signing a temporary peace deal with Washington last Wednesday. Shipping data showed that a total of 11 tankers were spotted leaving Iran’s Chabahar port in the Gulf of Oman last week, carrying a combined 20 million barrels of crude oil. (Bloomberg) Spot Market Overview: ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ► ►