SMM, July 23: To deepen exchanges within the lead and zinc industry, facilitate information channels, and accurately capture zinc industry development trends and market movements, on July 22, a team from SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (SMM), including copper-lead-zinc senior analyst Geng Zhiyao and zinc senior analyst Li Hanyu, visited Yunnan Luoping Zinc & Electricity Co., Ltd. for an exchange meeting and were warmly received by relevant company leaders. During the meeting, relevant personnel from Luoping Zinc & Electricity introduced the company's operational status, industry chain layout, and medium and long-term strategic plans to the SMM team. The two sides engaged in in-depth discussions on topics including domestic zinc raw material supply, smelting cost changes, zinc product market trends, downstream demand trajectories, comprehensive recovery of associated rare and precious metals, and the development direction of green smelting. Leveraging SMM's industry database, SMM analysts shared supply-demand analyses for the zinc market, price dynamics, and potential industry opportunities, and exchanged views with the company on challenges in industrial development. Luoping Zinc & Electricity, drawing on its own strengths in hydropower integration, mine resources, and integrated smelting and deep processing, outlined its advancement approaches in resource expansion, technological R&D, and extension into new materials. This visit established a bridge for industry information sharing. In the future, both parties will maintain regular communication and exchanges, continuously collaborate to explore paths of industrial synergy, and jointly promote the steady and high-quality development of the zinc industry. About Yunnan Luoping Zinc & Electricity Co., Ltd. Yunnan Luoping Zinc & Electricity Co., Ltd. was established in 2000 and listed on the main board of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in 2007 (stock code 002114). Its largest shareholder is Qujing Development and Investment Group, holding a 22.3960% stake, and the actual controller is the Qujing Municipal State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission. Key Assets: It encompasses three core resource sectors: minerals, hydropower, and zinc smelting, housing production units such as the Fule Lead-Zinc Mine, Lazhuang Power Plant, zinc smelter, comprehensive utilization plant, and ultrafine zinc powder plant. The company boasts an integrated capacity of processing 100,000 mt of raw ore annually, producing 120,000 mt of electrolytic zinc, 140,000 mt of sulphuric acid, 12,000 mt of ultrafine zinc powder, and generating 250 million kWh of electricity per year, with an annual output value exceeding 2 billion yuan. This forms a complete industry chain of "power generation — mining — smelting — rare and precious metals recovery — new materials." Coupled with its self-contained hydropower energy loop, this creates a unique core competitive advantage, positioning the company as a leader in the non-ferrous metal smelting sector in Southwest China. Main Businesses: Hydropower generation, mining of non-ferrous metals such as lead and zinc, zinc smelting, and production and sale of extended products. The products include zinc sulfide concentrates, lead concentrates, zinc ingot, industrial sulphuric acid, cadmium, ultrafine zinc powder, germanium concentrates, silver concentrates, copper concentrates, zinc alloy, industrial and residential electricity, and edible rapeseed oil. The company has successively received honors such as “Contract-honoring and Credit-worthy Enterprise” at provincial and municipal levels, “Key Industrial Enterprise of Qujing City”, National Intellectual Property Advantage Enterprise, High-tech Enterprise, and National Laboratory Accreditation Certificate. Strategic Development: In terms of hydropower resource development, first, it invested in and participated in the construction of the Luoping County Laodukou Hydropower Station with an installed capacity of 37,500 kW, holding 37% equity; second, it invested in and participated in the construction of the Laojiāngdǐ Hydropower Station in Xingyi City, Guizhou Province, with an installed capacity of 100,000 kW, holding 33% equity. In terms of lead-zinc mine development, first, it invested in and participated in the development of the Jinsha Lead-zinc Mine in Yongshan County, holding 23.2% equity. Second, through a private placement of shares, it completed the overall acquisition of Puding County Xiangrong Mining, Derong Mining, and Hongtai Mining Co., Ltd. under Guizhou Fanhua Mining Group Co., Ltd., gaining control of the mine assets held by the three companies. In terms of business development, first, it acquired the sulphuric acid plant of the former Luoping County Zinc Electric Company. Second, it built a rapeseed oil production line with a capacity of 10,000 mt per year. Third, it established a wholly-owned subsidiary, Yunnan Luoping Zinc Electric New Materials Co., Ltd., to extend the industry chain through zinc alloy products. Technological Innovation: The company holds 78 patents. Among them, the comprehensive treatment and recovery of valuable metals from high-iron, low-germanium zinc oxide calcine and zinc sulfite is at an industry-leading level. SMM Contact: Geng Zhiyao Tel: 13818541149

Overseas rare earth markets diverged this week between light and heavy types. Driven by the uptrend in China, terbium oxide and terbium metal prices rose, while light rare earths remained stable. Trading-wise, heavy rare earths saw few transactions due to export controls. On the industrial front, U.S. companies accelerated domestic recycling and purification, while European and Japanese firms advanced R&D on magnetic material recycling and rare-earth-free alternative technologies. Meanwhile, Indo-Pacific and South Korean players actively restructured supply chains, and resource development and processing projects were intensively launched in locations such as Malaysia, Thailand, and Brazil. The global “de-risking” layout for rare earths continued to deepen.

SMM Morning Briefing: Overnight LME copper opened at $13,633/mt, edged down to $13,581/mt in early trading, then rose to touch a high of $13,707.5/mt, and finally settled at $13,600/mt, up 0.90%, with trading volume of 21,000 lots and open interest at 243,000 lots, down 3,933 lots from the previous trading day, reflecting bear position reduction. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2608 contract opened at 104,700 yuan/mt, edged up to 105,140 yuan/mt in early trading, then drifted lower to touch a low of 104,540 yuan/mt, and finally settled at 105,140 yuan/mt, up 0.28%, with trading volume at 31,000 lots and open interest at 144,000 lots, down 783 lots from the previous trading day, reflecting bear position reduction.

[Chihong Zn & Ge Releases H1 2026 Earnings Guidance]According to Chihong Zn & Ge, the company preliminarily estimates that net profit attributable to shareholders for the first half of 2026 will reach RMB 1.55–1.75 billion, representing an increase of RMB 617.72–817.72 million from the same period last year, up 66.26%–87.71% YoY. The strong earnings growth was mainly driven by higher average market prices for its core products, including zinc, silver, germanium, as well as sulfuric acid, during the reporting period.

According to a report by Globe and Mail, cited by Mining.com, the Canadian government would invest hundreds of millions of dollars to support Teck Resources in building its Trail metal facility in British Columbia to expand germanium production and strengthen the North American critical minerals supply chain. The report, citing people familiar with the matter, said the funding would come from Natural Resources Canada, the Canada Growth Fund, and Export Development Canada (EDC). According to information released by Natural Resources Canada on July 3, Minister Tim Hodgson will deliver an important speech on critical minerals. A spokesperson for the department did not respond to a request for comment. Largest Producer Vancouver-based Teck is the largest germanium producer in North America, recovering this mineral from zinc ores in Alaska. The company is the only enterprise in Canada supplying germanium oxide to the US. Germanium is essential for national defense equipment, semiconductors, and chip manufacturing. Domestic production and processing capacity in the US is limited, making it necessary to secure new sources of supply. In May, Titan Mining said it was evaluating the possibility of collaborating with Teck to recover germanium from US zinc mines. Under a company agreement signed on May 14, Titan and Teck plan to recover 13 mt of germanium per year from Titan's Empire State zinc mine in New York State. Titan CEO Rita Adiani disclosed on Tuesday that the current germanium price in the US is $6,000/kg. Specialty Metals Germanium is a specialty metal produced at Teck’s Trail complex, alongside primary products lead and zinc, as well as indium and antimony. The facility is the world’s largest integrated lead and zinc smelter. With little to no germanium production domestically, securing its supply has become a critical issue for the US and other Western countries.

Titan Mining has reported district-wide germanium enrichment across its Empire State Mines (ESM) zinc operation in New York, highlighting a potentially significant by-product opportunity within the Balmat-Edwards zinc system. Reconnaissance sampling from multiple underground ore bodies and historic tailings facilities confirmed elevated germanium values throughout the district, with assays reaching 85.6 ppm Ge at the Mud Pond Main zone and 49.7 ppm Ge at the New Fold zone. Historic tailings samples returned grades ranging from 18.1 ppm to 44.7 ppm Ge. The company is currently working with Teck Resources’ Trail Operations to evaluate germanium recovery from existing processing streams. Preliminary testing indicates that germanium grades increase from approximately 21 g/t in plant feed to around 77 g/t in certain pre-flotation streams, suggesting natural concentration within the milling circuit. Titan estimates a potential annual germanium production of approximately 13,000 kg. Based on a germanium price assumption of US$6,000/kg, the project could generate roughly US$78 million in annual by-product revenue, significantly enhancing the economics of the Empire State zinc operation.

Germanium Mining has completed a Time Domain Electromagnetic (TDEM) ground survey and commenced an airborne magnetic survey at its wholly owned Lac du Km 35 property in Québec, Canada. The company is targeting germanium-silver-zinc mineralization within the project area and expects final airborne survey results by mid-July 2026. The survey covers an area surrounding the Laganière showing and several historic geophysical anomalies, with the objective of identifying new conductive zones that may host critical metal mineralization. Sampling at the Laganière showing has returned approximately 186 ppm germanium, representing one of the highest-grade germanium occurrences reported in Québec. Germanium Mining plans to conduct additional mapping and sampling before launching an initial diamond drilling program in early 2027, consisting of approximately six to ten drill holes totaling around 2,500 metres.

The reporter learned from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology that today, July 2, three mandatory national standards in the PV sector were officially approved and released. These standards set rigid constraints on energy consumption and energy efficiency across the entire chain of polysilicon, wafers, PV modules, and inverters, using standardized measures to refine the green management and control system of the PV industry chain, and providing institutional support for the high-quality development of the new energy industry. The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation, released three mandatory national standards on PV energy consumption and efficiency: "Energy Consumption Limit per Unit Product of Monocrystalline Silicon", "Energy Efficiency Limits and Energy Efficiency Grades for Crystalline Silicon PV Modules and Inverters", and "Energy Consumption Limit per Unit Product of Polysilicon and Germanium". These standards cover key segments of the PV industry chain including polysilicon, wafers, modules, and inverters, set energy consumption and energy efficiency indicators for relevant products by grade, and strictly control high-energy-consumption and low-efficiency capacity in each link; for modules, they innovatively incorporate the evaluation indicator of coupled environmental stress-induced degradation rate.

On June 27, three standards—"Energy Consumption Limit per Unit Product of Polycrystalline Silicon and Germanium," "Limiting Values of Energy Efficiency and Energy Efficiency Grades for Crystalline Silicon PV Modules and Inverters," and "Energy Consumption Limit per Unit Product of Monocrystalline Silicon"—were officially released, and the standards clearly state that they will be implemented on January 1, 2027.

SMM, June 30: Although market procurement demand remained mediocre, spot prices for Pr-Nd oxide recorded a second consecutive increase, supported by fluctuations in futures, difficulty in finding low-priced cargo in the market, some large manufacturers entering procurement, and a MoM decline of about 6% in Pr-Nd oxide production in June. On the demand side, long-term demand expansion expectations in the new energy industry chain such as robotics, along with the upcoming Q3 downstream concentrated procurement season in China and rising market expectations for subsequent demand recovery, bolstered the rare earth permanent magnet concept to strengthen on June 30, with the concept rising 2.79% by the close on June 30. In terms of individual stocks: Dongfang Zirconium Industry, Sinomine Resource Group, and Zhong Ke San Huan hit the daily limit up, while Hanghua Co., Ltd., Longhua Co., Ltd., Zhongxi Nonferrous, Sinosteel NMC, and Ningbo Yunsheng led the gains. Pr-Nd Oxide Spot Prices See Second Consecutive Increase; June Production Declines MoM In the spot market, on June 30, the average price of Pr-Nd oxide extended its upward trend from the previous trading day, rising another 0.68%. Currently, overall prices in the rare earth market remain stable. The increase in Pr-Nd oxide futures prices drove a simultaneous rise in supplier spot offers, making low-priced oxides hard to find in the market. However, metal enterprises were cautious in procurement due to unsatisfactory inquiries for metals, leading to generally moderate market trading activity. In the metal market, inquiry activity picked up slightly on the afternoon of the 30th, mainly driven by tender procurement from major magnetic material manufacturers, but most magnetic material enterprises remained on the sidelines, resulting in overall poor transactions. In the short term, Pr-Nd product prices may move sideways without significant improvement in downstream demand. On the supply side, further providing price support logic: in terms of production, according to SMM's latest survey, overall rare earth oxide production declined MoM in June, with Pr-Nd oxide seeing the most prominent decrease, shrinking approximately 6% MoM. Institutional Views SDIC Securities emphasized that heavy rare earths are accelerating inventory depletion due to a cliff-like decline in imports from Japan, opening a window for domestic substitution, with prices of dysprosium oxide and terbium oxide rebounding strongly. Materials such as AI high-capacity MLCCs, high-end ceramic substrates, and dental zirconia all require the addition of heavy rare earths. Growing demand combined with hard supply constraints is driving the price centers of both light and heavy rare earths upward together. Meanwhile, inflation trends in AI upstream materials such as MLCC dielectric powder, Low CTE electronic fabrics, M9 copper foil, and tantalum metals are clear, and the medium and long-term outlook is positive for the allocation value of strategic metals like rare earths, tungsten, copper, tin, molybdenum, antimony, germanium, gallium, tantalum, niobium, uranium, rhenium, and lithium. A research report from China Securities stated that domestic dental zirconia enterprises have confirmed "receipt of a notice from Japan's Tosoh Corporation regarding the suspension of zirconia powder supply," marking a shift in raw material shortages from expectations to reality following overseas rare earth supply restrictions. Yttria-stabilized nano zirconia (YSZ) is a high-performance ceramic material with yttrium oxide added as an additive. Due to restricted rare earth supply outside China, the price spread between Chinese and overseas markets has reached hundreds of times at its peak. The domestic price spread for yttrium oxide between Chinese and overseas markets is huge. Rare earths are indispensable additives for high-end materials and high-end manufacturing. As overseas rare earth supply tightens and the price spread between Chinese and overseas markets widens, domestic high-end materials containing rare earths are expected to gain a larger share of the global market, benefiting the upstream, midstream, and downstream segments of the rare earth industry chain. Recommended reading: