[SMM Brass Billet News Flash] Demand side, the traditional off-season effect continued to ferment, and the weak end-use demand from downstream brass billet sectors showed no improvement. Order follow-up in core downstream sectors such as home appliances, refrigeration, and bathroom hardware remained sluggish, with strong wait-and-see sentiment among end-users and subdued purchase willingness.

[SMM Brass Billet News] Supply side, the recycled brass raw materials market presented a pattern of "tight supply and high prices," which significantly constrained production. On one hand, the tight supply of imported secondary brass remained unresolved, and domestic waste brass recycling volume was limited, with market circulating resources remaining persistently tight; on the other hand, raw material prices fluctuated at highs, squeezing profit margins of copper billet enterprises. Most enterprises saw their raw material inventory continuously declining to relatively low levels, and some small and medium-sized enterprises were forced to slow down their production pace due to difficulties in raw material procurement.

[SMM Brass Billet News Flash] This week (5.15-5.21), the brass billet industry remained in the doldrums, with an operating rate of 52.14%, down 0.2 percentage points WoW. The market has entered the traditional consumption off-season, compounded by tight raw material supply, wild swings in copper prices, and sluggish end-use demand, putting sustained pressure on enterprises' production and operations.

This week (5.15-5.21), the brass billet industry remained in the doldrums, with an operating rate of 52.14%, down 0.2 percentage points WoW. Supply side, the recycled brass raw materials market exhibited a pattern of "tight supply and high prices," significantly constraining production . On one hand, the tight supply of imported secondary brass remained unresolved, and domestic scrap brass recycling volume was limited, with market circulating resources remaining persistently tight; on the other hand, raw material prices fluctuated at highs, squeezing enterprise profit margins. Most enterprises saw raw material inventory continuously declining to low levels, and some small and medium-sized enterprises were forced to slow down their production pace due to difficulties in raw material procurement. Demand side, the traditional off-season effect continued to intensify, with no improvement in weak end-use demand from downstream. Order follow-through in core downstream sectors such as home appliances, refrigeration, and bathroom hardware remained sluggish. End-users exhibited strong wait-and-see sentiment, and purchase willingness was subdued. Affected by this, brass billet enterprises saw a slowdown in order-taking pace, downstream cargo pick-up enthusiasm was insufficient, and product shipments were sluggish, leading to continued accumulation of finished product inventories at relatively high levels. Looking ahead to next week (5.22-5.28), the industry's traditional off-season nature is difficult to reverse, and end-use demand from downstream is unlikely to see substantial recovery; meanwhile, copper prices are expected to continue fluctuating at highs, cost side disturbances persist, and the tight supply pattern of recycled brass raw materials is unlikely to ease in the short term. SMM expects the industry operating rate to continue running at low levels, declining 0.06 percentage points WoW to 52.08%.

In mid-May, LME copper rallied strongly, exceeding the historical $14,000/mt mark for the first time. The boom on the metal exchange drove European copper scrap prices to unprecedented levels. According to German market data, wholesale purchasing prices for copper scrap increased by €30 to €55 per 100 kilograms within a single week, depending on the grade, with brass scrap following the uptrend. This price surge has further strengthened the reluctance to sell among holders of already scarce high-quality local scrap in Europe.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs, China's copper plate/sheet and strip exports totaled 12,246.37 mt in April 2026, up 5.46% MoM and up 14.01% YoY. From January to April, China's cumulative copper plate/sheet and strip exports reached 45,487.58 mt, up 16.14% YoY cumulatively.

In April, China's copper plate/sheet and strip exports showed structural divergence. Copper strip was up 15.6% YoY, accounting for nearly 70% of the total and remaining the core export driver. Brass strip and cupronickel strip were up 9.0% and 25.0% YoY respectively, both rebounding MoM, with brass strip showing a notable MoM increase. Bronze strip and other categories still posted positive YoY growth, but pulled back MoM due to short-term order pace fluctuations. Overall, mainstream categories all maintained YoY growth, while MoM performance diverged due to differences in order pace.

[SMM Brass Billet News Flash] Affected by wild swings in copper prices, cost uncertainty increased. End-user wait-and-see sentiment was strong, and the pace of taking orders and picking up goods slowed down, leading to some accumulation of finished product inventories at brass billet enterprises.

[SMM Brass Billet News Flash] This week (5.8-5.14), the operating rate of the brass billet industry was 52.34%, up 7.67 percentage points WoW. The impact of the post-holiday period gradually faded, and industry production recovered slightly. However, affected by the arrival of the traditional consumption off-season, the recovery in operating rates was insufficient and failed to rebound to pre-holiday levels.

This week (5.8-5.14), the operating rate of the brass billet industry was 52.34%, up 7.67 percentage points WoW. The impact of the post-holiday period gradually faded, and industry production saw a slight recovery. However, affected by the arrival of the traditional consumption off-season, the recovery in operating rates was insufficient and unable to rebound to pre-holiday levels. Supply side, recycled brass raw materials supply remained tight, enterprise raw material inventories continued to decline, and production was subject to certain constraints. Meanwhile, copper prices swung wildly, cost uncertainty increased, end-user wait-and-see sentiment was strong, and the pace of taking orders and picking up goods slowed down, leading to a buildup of finished product inventories at enterprises. Looking ahead to next week (5.15-5.21), SMM expects the industry operating rate to decline 0.23 percentage points WoW to 52.11%. The industry has currently entered the traditional off-season. Coupled with copper prices fluctuating at highs and weak follow-through on end-user orders, the industry operating rate is unlikely to improve in the short term and is expected to remain at low levels.