SMM Nickel Jun 15 News: Macro and Market News: (1) As the Iran war neared the four-month mark, US-Iran peace talks achieved a breakthrough. The US, Iran, and key mediator Pakistan all indicated that an agreement had been reached and would be formally signed in Switzerland this Friday. (2) The People's Bank of China announced that on the 15th, it would conduct a 600 billion yuan outright reverse repo operation with a 6-month (183-day) tenor, using a fixed quantity, rate tender, and multiple-price auction method. Given that 600 billion yuan of this tenor matured during the month, this 6-month outright reverse repo operation was a full rollover. Spot Market: On Jun 15, SMM #1 refined nickel prices rose by 500 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. For spot premiums, Jinchuan #1 refined nickel averaged 1,650 yuan/mt, down 100 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, while the mainstream domestic electrodeposited nickel range was -500-400 yuan/mt. Futures Market: The most-traded SHFE nickel 2607 contract strengthened throughout the morning session, closing the morning at 136,120 yuan/mt, up 1.27%. The US and Iran reached a memorandum of understanding in Islamabad, extending the US-Iran ceasefire by 60 days. The Strait of Hormuz is about to reopen, and both sides have declared an end to hostilities and will formally sign the agreement this Friday. The recovering macro sentiment supported a collective rebound in non-ferrous metals prices; however, the extent of the nickel price rebound remained capped by inventory, with nickel prices expected to range between 133,000-140,000 yuan/mt.

[SMM Silicon-based PV Morning Meeting Summary: Module Price-holding Sentiment Increases Somewhat, Polysilicon Prices Remain Stable Temporarily] Last week, distributed module prices in China were mostly stable, and enterprises' willingness to hold prices firm increased somewhat, especially among some second-tier companies that had previously seen larger price declines. On the centralized side, projects have increased recently, but prices have started to decline. The lowest ex-factory price for some orders under delivery has fallen to 0.68 Yuan/W, and new order prices have also dipped below 0.7 Yuan/W. Currently, quotes for distributed high-efficiency Topcon modules are: 183 (0.734 Yuan/W), 210R (0.740 Yuan/W), and 210N (0.7425 Yuan/W); for centralized, Topcon 182/183 (0.721 Yuan/W) and 210N (0.741 Yuan/W).

[Domestic and overseas aluminum prices see a modest simultaneous recovery; China's destocking stabilizes with limited upside room] SMM maintains its assessment that inventory will drop to around 1.28 million mt by late June, and is expected to further approach 1.2 million mt by end-June or early July. The futures market sees short-term stabilization signals, but high domestic inventory pressure remains relatively evident, which is expected to limit the upside room for domestic aluminum prices. In the short term, domestic aluminum prices are expected to mainly fluctuate and consolidate.

[SMM Zinc Morning Meeting Minutes: US and Iran About to Sign Peace Agreement, LME Zinc Stops Falling and Rebounds]: Last Friday, LME zinc opened at $3,526.5/mt. After opening, LME zinc briefly maintained a fluctuating trend, during which it dipped to a low of $3,511.5/mt, then started a fluctuating upward trend, touching a high of $3,590.5/mt near the close, finally closing up at $3,583/mt, up $57.5/mt, an increase of 1.63%...

[SMM Daily Review: Futures Rebound Lifts Sentiment; Local NPI Trading Volume Picks Up] Jun 12 (SMM) — The SMM high-grade NPI upstream sentiment factor was 2.73, up 0.01 MoM, while the downstream sentiment factor was 1.82, also up 0.01 MoM.

SMM Nickel, June 12: Macro and Market News: (1) Hours after Trump announced he would bomb Iran again, Trump stated that, given the consultation results with Iran have been approved by Iran’s top leadership, the strike on Iran tonight is canceled. The US-Iran agreement has entered the finalization stage and is expected to be signed in Europe this weekend. (2) The European Central Bank raised its three key interest rates by 25 basis points as expected, marking the first hike in nearly three years. ECB President Lagarde stated that today’s decision is not an aggressive move, and the 25-basis-point hike serves as a signal. Spot Market: On June 12, SMM #1 refined nickel price rose by 900 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Regarding spot premiums, Jinchuan #1 refined nickel averaged 1,750 yuan/mt, up 400 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, while domestic mainstream brand electrodeposited nickel premiums ranged from -500 to 400 yuan/mt. Futures Market: The most-traded SHFE nickel 2607 contract rebounded in early trading, closing the morning session at 135,370 yuan/mt, up 0.94%. US CPI exceeded expectations, fueling rate hike expectations, and the world entered a monetary tightening window. On the Indonesia side, the premium accumulated earlier due to ore scarcity is being corrected. China’s refined nickel inventory has reached a historic high, and domestic inventory continues to increase. Visible inventory pressure has not been fundamentally alleviated, and nickel prices are under pressure in the short term.

[SMM Tin Midday Review: Semiconductor Counter-Trend Rebound and Overseas Geopolitical Reversal Drag Down SHFE Tin Contract Center]

SMM June 12: In early trading, the SHFE aluminum 2606 contract fluctuated upward, with its overall price center higher than the previous trading day. Selling sentiment in the market increased today, but buying interest among downstream users was suppressed by the higher aluminum prices. However, destocking accelerated, and premium expectations narrowed, supporting firm quotes and transaction prices. Mainstream spot transaction prices were at a discount of 90–100 yuan/mt against the SHFE aluminum 07 contract. The selling sentiment index in east China was 2.96, up 0.07 from the previous day, and the buying sentiment index was 2.83, down 0.04. SHFE aluminum futures showed a rebound uptrend today. Despite the weekend stockpiling cycle, downstream processing enterprises in central China had ample earlier stockpiles, leading to low buying interest. Suppliers tended to sell heavily while the discount had not yet widened, causing a price collapse and decline. Overall market trading sentiment turned weaker compared with the previous two days. The actual transaction price range in central China was around a discount of 130–160 yuan/mt against the SHFE aluminum 07 contract. The selling sentiment index in central China was 2.91, up 0.01 from the previous day, while the buying sentiment index was 2.21, down 0.01. On the inventory front, aluminum ingot inventories in major consumption areas fell by 1.4 from the previous day, with all three regions showing destocking.

Spot lithium carbonate prices stopped falling and rebounded this week, fluctuating upward. The futures market held up well, with the most-traded September 2026 contract oscillating upward from a price range of 160,300-165,800 yuan/mt at the start of the week to 164,800-175,000 yuan/mt, hitting a mid-week high of 175,000 yuan/mt. The weekly gain was approximately 5.5%, open interest increased significantly, and bullish funds intervened actively. Market transactions showed a pattern of upstream holding prices firm and holding back from selling, while downstream purchased as needed, creating a clear misalignment in price expectations between buyers and sellers. Upstream lithium chemical plants maintained their stance of holding spot orders firm and holding back from selling, with some enterprises keeping their willingness to sell at prices above 170,000 yuan/mt. Downstream material plants held comparatively lower psychological procurement price levels, with most purchasing as needed; their willingness to purchase spot orders weakened as prices rose. Overall, market inquiries were relatively active, but actual transaction volumes remained stable due to the misalignment in price expectations between upstream and downstream. Lithium carbonate production increased this week, mainly due to production lines at spodumene processing facilities that had been under maintenance earlier resuming production successively. The recycling sector and salt lake operations maintained stable production, while lepidolite operations saw minor output fluctuations due to raw material supply issues. From the standpoint of actual transactions and inventory, as prices continued to fluctuate downward, upstream lithium chemical plants were reluctant to sell spot orders; only a few enterprises that had previously hedged at high levels managed to complete small-volume spot transactions with downstream or traders, while most lithium chemical plants still focused on holding prices firm and holding back from selling. However, due to the concentrated delivery of long-term contract orders early in the month, combined with some resumed production lines not yet reaching full capacity, lithium chemical plant inventories experienced slight destocking this week. Downstream material plants saw inventory buildup this week, as early-month long-term contracts and customer-supplied materials arrived successively, along with dip-buying of spot orders. Traders, following downstream purchase-as-needed patterns, exhibited a destocking trend. The price rise this week was mainly driven by the following factors: First, stronger import-side support. According to Chile customs data, Chile's total lithium carbonate exports in May were 19,100 mt, down 35.2% MoM, of which exports to China were 13,600 mt, a sharp decline of 40.8% MoM, marking the first significant pullback in the past six months. Lithium carbonate monthly imports are expected to decrease somewhat in June-July; coupled with continued high production schedules for downstream LFP materials in June, China's destocking speed is expected to accelerate. Second, news-driven disturbances. A fire occurred at the Greenbushes lithium mine's CGP3 plant; although CGP1 and CGP2 operations were unaffected and IGO did not revise its FY2026 production guidance, the extent of the damage to CGP3 and the repair timetable still require attention. A substantial delay in its production ramp-up could impact the pace of future supply growth. Third, the ongoing tug-of-war between longs and shorts persisted, with supply-side factors such as the drop in Chilean exports and Jiangxi mine permit renewals providing support for prices. However, headwinds such as high warrant pressure and expectations of Zimbabwean ore arrivals capped the upside, keeping the tug-of-war between longs and shorts ongoing. Looking ahead, short-term lithium carbonate prices are likely to hold up well.

[Bullish Sentiment Prevailed in the Market This Week, with Solid Support for the Silicon Metal Bottom]: On the supply side, operating rates at northern silicon enterprises were basically stable, while those in Sichuan and Yunnan slowly improved. However, the pace of overall supply release was limited, with insufficient incremental elasticity. Combined with demand side keeping pace, supply and demand in the industry were broadly balanced recently. Recently, bullish sentiment dominated the market, providing strong support for the silicon metal bottom. Silicon metal prices were constrained in both upside and downside room and may continue to move sideways within a narrow range. Watch for fluctuations in macro expectations and changes in the PV industry, which may cause marginal disturbance to silicon metal.