With the vigorous development of the NEV industry, China's first batch of power batteries entered a large-scale "retirement period." Recently, lithium battery recycling projects were intensively launched nationwide, from dismantling and crushing to hydrometallurgy, from second-life application to material regeneration, comprehensively accelerating the layout of all links in the industry chain.

Xingye Silver&Tin released a progress announcement on July 31 regarding a safety incident at a subsidiary, showing that: On July 30, 2026, Yinman Mining received the On-site Treatment Measures Decision Letter (No. 260 [West] Emergency Decision [2026]) issued by the Xiwu Banner Emergency Management Bureau, requiring the synchronous suspension of Yinman Mining's mineral processing tailings system. As of the disclosure of this announcement, both the mining system and the mineral processing tailings system of Yinman Mining have been suspended. The details of this accident as announced by Xingye Silver&Tin show that: At around 3:30 PM on July 26, 2026, an accident occurred during underground production construction at the mine of the company's wholly-owned subsidiary, Xiwuzhumuqin Banner Yinman Mining Co., Ltd., resulting in 1 fatality and no injuries. After the accident, Yinman Mining, in accordance with the On-site Treatment Measures Decision Letter (No. 257 [West] Emergency Decision [2026]) issued by the Xiwuzhumuqin Banner Emergency Management Bureau, suspended the underground mining area. Regarding the impact on the company's production, operations, and performance: Yinman Mining is primarily engaged in the mining, processing, and sales of non-ferrous metals such as silver, tin, copper, lead, and zinc, with a production capacity of 1.65 million mt/year. In 2025, Yinman Mining recorded operating revenue of RMB3,062.0434 million, accounting for 55.12% of the company's total consolidated operating revenue, and achieved net profit of RMB1,346.2785 million. In Q1 2026, it recorded operating revenue of RMB961.5985 million, representing 45.15% of the total, with net profit of RMB474.7488 million. Currently, the cause of the accident and the reason for the fatality are still under investigation. Yinman Mining will fully cooperate with the accident investigation and subsequent work. Since the duration of the suspension at Yinman Mining cannot be determined at this time, the impact of this production halt on the company's current and full-year performance cannot be accurately estimated for now. The company will, in accordance with relevant regulations, fulfill its information disclosure obligations in a timely manner based on the progress of the accident investigation. Investors are advised to be cautious about investment risks. Performance: Xingye Silver&Tin's 2025 annual report shows that in 2025, the company realized operating revenue of RMB5,555.2536 million, a YoY increase of 30.09%; total profit of RMB2,096.237 million, up 18.75% YoY; and net profit attributable to shareholders of the publicly listed company of RMB1,704.2393 million, rising 11.40% YoY. Xingye Silver&Tin's announcement shows that in 2025, the breakdown of operating revenue from the company's main mineral products as a share of overall operating revenue was as follows: ore-derived silver (RMB2,175.7825 million, 39.17%); ore-derived tin (RMB1,649.6398 million, 29.70%); ore-derived zinc (RMB975.8673 million, 17.57%); ore-derived lead (RMB220.945 million, 3.98%); ore-derived iron (RMB180.3799 million, 3.25%); ore-derived copper (RMB133.0043 million, 2.39%); ore-derived antimony (RMB100.3568 million, 1.81%); ore-derived gold (RMB82.3402 million, 1.48%); and ore-derived bismuth (RMB16.6744 million, 0.30%). Among these, the combined operating revenue from ore-derived tin and ore-derived silver accounted for 68.86%. Regarding the company's main business and key performance drivers, Xingye Silver&Tin stated in its 2025 annual report: The company is a large mining group primarily engaged in the exploration, mining, and processing of non-ferrous metals and precious metals. As of the disclosure date of this report, the company has over 20 subsidiaries, including 8 producing mining companies: Yinman Mining, Qianjinda Mining, Yubang Mining, Rongguan Mining, Xilin Mining, Rongbang Mining, Ruineng Mining, and Bosheng Mining; Atlantic Tin's Achmmach tin mine under AtlasTinSAS is in the construction phase; Tanghe Era Mining is in suspension; Yitong Mining and Yunnan Xigui are in the exploration stage. Hainan Fund is mainly engaged in equity investment management; Xingye Gold (Hong Kong) focuses on metal and mining trade, corporate mergers and acquisitions, and is responsible for expanding markets outside China and acquiring high-quality overseas mineral resources; Hainan Guomao and Tianjin Guomao mainly handle the sales of non-ferrous metal mineral products and the procurement of some raw materials; Xingye Ruijin conducts process research, technology R&D, and upgrading in areas such as exploration, mining and processing, and comprehensive tailings recycling. Tibet Shannan Antimony-Gold, Tibet Xinda Mining, and Xing'an Meng Fuxingtun Mining serve as the company's regional resource integration platforms. During the reporting period, the company successfully acquired an 85% equity stake in Yubang Mining. According to data from the World Silver Institute as of the end of 2023, Yubang Mining's single silver mine ranks first in Asia and fifth globally. This acquisition further strengthened the company's resource advantages, laying a solid resource foundation for sustainable development. Meanwhile, through its subsidiary Xingye Gold (Hong Kong), the company increased investment in overseas mineral resources, successfully acquiring a 100% equity interest in Atlantic Tin. This acquisition was a key step in implementing the company's 'going global' strategy. Based on the tin mine classification criteria for large mines in the Standard for Classification of Mineral Resource/Reserve Scales (DZ/T0400-2022), the Achmmach tin mine owned by Atlantic Tin is now equivalent to five large deposits. Through this integration of overseas tin resources, the company has further perfected its international tin layout and secured important strategic resources for long-term development. The company's main performance is derived from non-ferrous metal mining and processing operations. During the reporting period, revenue from this sector accounted for 99.64% of total 2025 operating revenue. Key factors influencing the performance of the mining and processing segment include production and sales volumes of main products, market prices, and the cost of non-ferrous metal and precious metal mining and processing operations. For the business plan, Xingye Silver&Tin stated in its 2025 annual report: 2026 is the final year of the company's '23' plan. The board of directors will closely follow the theme of high-quality development, fully implement the set work targets, continuously deepen the concept of 'trust and synergy,' and go all out to achieve the closing goals of the '23' plan. Key tasks are as follows: 1. Uphold safety and environmental protection bottom lines, use 2026, the 'Year of Safety Management Implementation,' as a lever to fully consolidate safety responsibilities, reinforce the achievements of the 'Year of Collective Safety Calm,' enhance risk anticipation and process control, and strictly prevent safety and environmental accidents to achieve safe, stable, green, and low-carbon development. 2. Comprehensively advance the construction of key projects, strengthen whole-process management of project budgeting, progress, and quality, and coordinate the implementation of projects such as Yinman Mining's 2.97 million mt expansion, Yubang Mining's 8.25 million mt expansion, the Morocco project, and the Budunyin'gen Mining (managed) project to ensure timely completion and full production, releasing capacity benefits. 3. Continuously intensify exploration and reserve expansion efforts, balance production operations with geological exploration, steadily advance exploration at existing mines and surrounding areas, accelerate resource upgrade to reserves, and constantly consolidate the resource base. 4. Deepen industrial synergy and resource integration, leveraging Inner Mongolia's core regional advantages to gradually expand overseas resource deployment; persist in focusing on silver and tin as main business directions, enriching and optimizing resource varieties. Steadily advance subsequent acquisitions and integration of Weiling Co., actively track high-quality mineral project opportunities in China and overseas, and enhance overall competitiveness through synergistic industrial mergers and acquisitions. 5. Further strengthen institutional enforcement and internal control management, ensure that all systems, processes, and management requirements are implemented effectively, and improve the company's refined management level; strengthen enforcement capacity, ensure that production plans, comprehensive budgets, and work deployments are fully carried out, and promote deep integration of corporate culture with business management. 6. Fully promote preparations for Hong Kong stock listing, accelerate the establishment of dual capital market platforms at home and abroad, enhance cross-border capital operation capabilities, provide stronger financial support for resource integration and strategy implementation, and elevate the company's high-quality sustainable development to a new level. Xingye Silver&Tin's Q1 report for this year disclosed that in January-March 2026, the company realized operating revenue of RMB2,129.8691 million, an 85.32% YoY increase; net profit attributable to shareholders reached RMB1,337.6722 million, up 257.32% YoY. As of March 31, 2026, total assets were RMB19,688.8316 million, with net assets attributable to shareholders at RMB10,825.4666 million. Revenue breakdown: In January-March 2026, the revenue share of the company's main mineral products was as follows: ore-derived silver (RMB1,410.1104 million, 66.21%); ore-derived tin (RMB234.0354 million, 10.99%); ore-derived zinc (RMB228.1249 million, 10.71%); ore-derived lead (RMB71.8509 million, 3.37%); ore-derived antimony (RMB53.1029 million, 2.49%); ore-derived gold (RMB51.0181 million, 2.40%); ore-derived iron (RMB44.1733 million, 2.07%); ore-derived copper (RMB35.6489 million, 1.67%); and ore-derived indium (RMB524,100, 0.02%). Among these, the combined revenue from ore-derived tin and ore-derived silver accounted for 77.19%. Xingye Silver&Tin's Q1 report announcement stated: Operating profit for the current period increased by 238.16% compared to the previous period, total profit was up by 236.36%, and net profit attributable to the parent company's owners rose by 257.32%. The main reasons: In the reporting period, selling prices of the company's main mineral products such as silver and tin rose YoY; Yubang Mining's capacity gradually released, with a significant YoY increase in the production and sales of ore-derived silver; and a gain of RMB321 million was realized from the transfer of a 60% equity stake in Shuangyuan Nonferrous. Huaxi Securities' July 25 research report believed that: Silver's macro logic is similar to that of gold, while also possessing stronger industrial attributes, and its price is driven by a resonance of fundamental, policy, and market factors. From the core support perspective, silver's inclusion in the US 'critical minerals' list has triggered sustained capital attention and hoarding effects, becoming a key policy catalyst for price increases. Although short-term demand has pulled back, the supply-side gap remains prominent, serving as the core fundamental support for silver prices. It is expected that in the coming years, the silver supply-demand gap will continue to widen. Combined with industrial recovery demand amid an easing cycle, silver's price elasticity is significantly higher than gold's, and it is likely to rise given the resonance of a loose environment and industrial demand, with a bullish long-term outlook on silver prices. The current silver sector is in a phase of pulling back and consolidating at lows; although weighed down in the short term by US dollar strength and delayed rate cut expectations, it still offers value for medium and long-term positioning. Beneficiary stocks of silver: [Shengda Resources], [Xingye Silver&Tin].

SMM July 31 – In terms of imports and exports, according to data from the General Administration of Customs of China, from January to June 2026, China's cumulative alumina imports reached 2.277 million tonnes, up a substantial 749.1% year-on-year; cumulative exports stood at 1.609 million tonnes, up 19.8% year-on-year; resulting in a net import of 668,000 tonnes, with the net import pattern continuing to widen. By import origin, Australia remained the largest supplier, with cumulative imports of 1.643 million tonnes in H1, accounting for 72.14% of total imports—compared to just 495,000 tonnes for the full year of 2025. Imports from Indonesia reached 398,000 tonnes, accounting for 17.5%, already exceeding the full-year 2025 volume of 310,000 tonnes. Overall import volumes continue to climb. In terms of port inventories, as of July 30, alumina stocks at major Chinese ports stood at approximately 940,000 tonnes, indicating that overseas alumina continues to exert pressure on the domestic market. So far, at least six cargoes of imported alumina are known to be arriving in August, with imports of around 210,000 tonnes already confirmed, and more shipments are expected to follow. On the export side, China exported 1.022 million tonnes of alumina to Russia in H1, accounting for 63.5% of total exports, keeping Russia as China's largest alumina export destination. Meanwhile, exports to Oman, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia reached 294,000 tonnes, 159,000 tonnes, and 34,000 tonnes, respectively, collectively accounting for 30.3% of total exports. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East remain unresolved. Although some production capacity has resumed, key shipping lanes remain blocked, forcing cargoes to be rerouted via overland transport. As a result, some overseas alumina needs to be shipped to China for rebagging into sacks before being re-exported to the Middle East, which explains why export volumes to these three countries have not declined thus far. Overall, although overseas alumina prices have risen recently, both import and export volumes are expected to remain elevated, and the net import pattern is likely to continue in July. On the overseas market front, the global alumina market remained in surplus in July. As of July 31, the lowest spot transaction price overseas was $325/mt FOB Western Australia, equivalent to approximately RMB 2,868.8/tonne at major domestic ports including VAT.

I. India’s JSW Steel to Invest in a New 600,000 Tons/Year High-Grade Non-Oriented Silicon Steel Project JSW Steel is India’s largest private steelmaker. It has recently been aggressively expanding its silicon steel capacity to back India’s industrial development roadmap. The roadmap targets doubling India’s national steel production capacity by 2030, and this capacity expansion by JSW is a key initiative in response to the national industrial plan. To be located at JSW Steel’s Vijayanagar plant in Toranagallu, the project will produce non-oriented electrical steel, widely deployed in new energy vehicle motors and general-purpose electric motors. The project entails the design and construction of three silicon steel processing lines: 1 normalizing and pickling line (APL) with an annual capacity of 600,000 tons; 2 annealing and coating lines (ACL), each with an annual capacity of 270,000 tons. II. China Faces Overcapacity in Non-Oriented Silicon Steel, with Nearly 10 Million Tons of New Capacity Yet to Be Commissioned Source: Publicly Available Data In terms of production capacity, the total capacity of the non-oriented silicon steel industry is projected to reach 25.09 million tons in 2026, marking the end of the rapid capacity expansion cycle spanning 2020 to 2026. Capacity growth will slow down starting from 2026, with a modest and steady annual growth rate of only 6% forecast for 2027 through 2030. From the perspective of product mix, a substantial grade upgrade has been realized for commissioned non-oriented silicon steel capacities as of June 2026. In sharp contrast to the low-end product structure in mid-2020 when medium and low grades accounted for 79%, their proportion dropped to 47% in 2026, while the share of high-grade products rose to 30%. More notably, the capacity proportion of new-energy-specific grades applicable to new energy vehicles, wind power and other sectors surged from 8% to 22%. This fully demonstrates the landmark transformation of the non-oriented silicon steel industry, featuring a shift in capacity growth momentum, premium product upgrading and structural iteration toward exclusive grades for new energy applications. Source: Publicly Available Data Pipeline Capacity to Be Commissioned According to public statistics, the pending-to-launch capacity of non-oriented electrical steel totals approximately 9.4 million tons, scheduled to come online mainly from the second half of 2026 to 2027. All projects set for commissioning in 2026 produce high-grade and new-energy-specific premium grades, located in North China (Tianjin), East China (Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi), and South China (Fujian, Guangxi). Most adopt the semi-process production route, with deployment by both state-owned and private enterprises. 2027 will also be a peak year for capacity release, with massive incremental capacity rolled out across North, East and South China. While high-grade and new-energy-focused capacity will continue to be launched, a small volume of supplementary medium-and-low-grade capacity will also be added. Large-scale 1-million-ton-level new-energy-grade projects will emerge in Hebei, Jiangsu and other regions, accompanied by an increased share of full-process capacity, with private capital acting as the primary driving force for capacity expansion. Regionally, East China and North China serve as the core areas for new capacity rollout. Production is dominated by the semi-process route, and the product mix is overwhelmingly composed of high-grade and new-energy-exclusive grades tailored for new energy vehicle motors and high-efficiency motors. China has basically completed the structural transformation of its non-oriented electrical steel capacity, which can fully meet domestic market demand. Nevertheless, nearly 10 million tons of new capacity are still pending commissioning, which will further loosen the supply side of domestic non-oriented electrical steel. III. Conclusion China’s non-oriented electrical steel sector is currently undergoing intensive capacity expansion, with a large batch of planned high-end capacities being put into concentrated operation. The industry is already facing prominent overcapacity pressure, and the market expects overseas exports to digest part of surplus output and ease the domestic supply-demand imbalance. However, market access barriers and surging overseas local supply have greatly undermined the feasibility of export-driven absorption: To shield their domestic steel industries, multiple overseas economies have frequently launched anti-dumping and countervailing (AD/CVD) trade investigations targeting Chinese non-oriented electrical steel. They have drastically lifted market entry costs for Chinese products through hefty punitive tariffs and Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), directly obstructing export shipments. Foreign steelmakers have accelerated localized capacity deployment in parallel. Relying on local policy incentives and low energy costs, they have built new non-oriented electrical steel production lines to progressively achieve self-sufficiency in high-end silicon steel. This not only reduces their reliance on Chinese imports but also creates head-on competition with Chinese products in the global marketplace. Under the compound impact of mounting domestic and external pressures, the export route for absorbing excess domestic capacity has encountered drastically heightened obstacles, making it far more difficult for the industry to clear surplus production. This compellingly pushes domestic manufacturers to accelerate differentiated product upgrading, extend business downstream to high-value-added new energy industrial chains, explore emerging overseas markets, and set up localized overseas production bases to break through the predicament.

Overall, upstream producers support prices amid losses with rising factory inventories, midstream traders destock continuously , while downstream purchasers insist on low-price procurement. The multi-dimensional market game has weakened overall trading liquidity. Costs form a solid bottom support for spot prices, while high factory inventories and sluggish off-season demand cap upward price momentum. Sustained market downturns may trigger further active production cuts on the supply side.

[SMM Cobalt Lithium Morning Meeting Summary: Raw Material Price Divergence Intensifies; Energy Storage Demand Supports Continued Industry Prosperity] This week, the relevant material markets continued to diverge in performance. Upstream ore prices stopped falling and rebounded, but high-price transactions remained constrained. Some ex-China capacities gradually recovered, and market attention shifted from supply disruptions to the pace of new capacity releases. Salt products were supported by maintenance outages, tightening circulation of spot orders, and low inventories, leading to somewhat active spot transactions. However, downstream players still mainly made just-in-time procurement on price dips, and concentrated stockpiling has yet to emerge. The cobalt industry chain remained under pressure overall, with the price centers of refined cobalt, intermediate products, cobalt salts, and cobalt powder shifting downward. Off-season demand, inventory pressure, and low-priced cargoes continued to weigh on the market. Nickel sulphate inventories declined, and cost support strengthened somewhat. Prices of ternary cathode precursors and ternary cathode materials generally remained stable. The LFP, electrolyte, and sodium-ion battery sectors performed relatively strongly, with demand from energy storage, commercial vehicles, and Q3 stockpiling driving production schedules higher. Inventories of some products continued to decline. The anode and separator markets were generally stable. Different raw material varieties in the recycling sector showed divergent performance. The overall industry chain remained in a phase of concurrent demand improvement and cost pass-through.