SMM Steel, May 19: According to SMM statistics, estimated total shipments to mainstream markets this week were 219,700 mt, down 2.05% WoW. By market: Table 1: Mainstream Market Arrivals Comparison Source: SMM Steel Shanghai market: Shipments of hot-rolled coils to the Shanghai market moved sideways WoW this week. Specifically, shipments from mainstream steel mills in south China remained at low levels, while shipments from east China and steel mills in north China were basically stable. Looking ahead to next week, considering the recent production pace adjustments at mainstream steel mills in south China, coupled with steel prices being in the doldrums recently, which suppressed steel mills' shipping enthusiasm, arrivals to the Shanghai market are expected to remain at relatively low levels next week. Chart-1: Shanghai Market Arrivals Source: SMM Steel Lecong market: Shipments to Lecong moved sideways WoW this week. Specifically, resources from north China remained stable WoW, while arrivals of local mainstream resources increased WoW. Currently, DDH's shipments remained relatively aggressive, leading to a notable increase in overall arrivals. Looking ahead, as the price difference between north and south China narrows, steel mill shipments may trend downward, and Lecong arrivals may potentially pull back in the short term. Chart-2: Lecong Market Arrivals Source: SMM Steel

[SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Continued to Fall on May 19] Today, SMM battery-grade spot lithium carbonate prices fluctuated downward compared to the previous working day. Futures side, the lithium carbonate 2609 contract opened high at 191,000 yuan/mt today, then quickly pulled back after the opening. During the morning session, it fluctuated downward and broke below the average price line. Around midday, it accelerated its decline to a daily low of 182,100 yuan/mt (a drop of over 5%). In the afternoon session, it rebounded slightly but struggled to rebound further, weakening again toward the close, ultimately settling down 3.71% at 184,400 yuan/mt, with open interest decreasing by 20,533 lots. Spot market, lithium carbonate prices pulled back from highs after the previous rapid rally, which notably stimulated downstream inquiries and purchasing enthusiasm. Upstream lithium chemical plants still maintained willingness to hold prices firm, and some enterprises that had hedged at previous highs increased spot order shipments to downstream buyers. Overall, inquiries and actual transactions in the spot market were active. Lithium prices are expected to have limited downside in the short term and are expected to hover at highs.

The most-traded HRC contract declined first and then rebounded today, closing at 3,428 at the end of the session, down 0.32% intraday. Spot HRC prices mostly fell 10-20 yuan/mt today, with some markets remaining stable. In terms of supply, the impact from maintenance on hot-rolled production was 137,500 mt this week, down 98,500 mt WoW, and the impact from maintenance next week will be 185,500 mt, up 48,000 mt WoW, with overall pressure being neutral. Demand side, end-users mainly purchased at low prices. As futures rose at the end of the session, market transactions improved slightly, and there was also low-price shipments in the spot-futures price spread. Cost side, after macro front disturbances diminished, short-term cost support weakened somewhat. Looking ahead, the supply-dema....

[SMM Coking Coal and Coke Daily Review] Supply side, coking enterprises maintained moderate profits, with coke supply remaining stable with a slight increase. Shipments from coking enterprises were smooth, and their own coke inventories stood at low levels. Demand side, steel prices have recently fluctuated and pulled back, but steel mills currently enjoy decent profitability, with hot metal output remaining at a relatively high level, supporting solid procurement demand for coke from steel mills. In summary, the coke supply-demand pattern is in a tight balance, and the coke market may hold up well in the short term.

[SMM Steel] US rebar exports totaled 5,149 tonnes in March 2026, up 4.1% m-o-m but down 70.5% y-o-y, according to US Department of Commerce export data. Export value fell to 4.08 million USD from 4.65 million USD in February and 14.71 million USD in March 2025. Canada remained the largest destination for US rebar exports with 2,558 tonnes, although shipments were significantly lower compared with 3,174 tonnes in February and 10,350 tonnes in March last year.

[SMM Steel] Japan’s cold rolled sheet and strip shipments increased by 19.7% m-o-m in March 2026 to 407,826 tonnes, although volumes were still down 2.7% y-o-y, according to JISF data. Domestic shipments accounted for 51.9% of total volumes, while exports represented 48.1%. CR inventories declined by 4.6% m-o-m to 647,044 tonnes but remained 4.5% higher y-o-y. Meanwhile, CR production rose 10.2% m-o-m to 376,896 tonnes, though output was still down 10.5% compared with March 2025.