In late this month, Lithium Argentina announced its fourth quarter and full-year 2025 results, along with an outlook on subsequent expansion plans. The company holds a 44.8% equity interest in the Cauchari-Olaroz project. The company's flagship Cauchari-Olaroz project currently has an annual production capacity of 40,000 tons, with plans to expand by 45,000 tons per year. In the fourth quarter of 2025, the company produced approximately 9,700 tons of lithium carbonate. For the full year of 2025, production reached 34,100 tons, including 359 tons of lithium chloride (in LCE terms) produced and sold to Ganfeng Lithium in the first half of 2025 to support the startup of Ganfeng's Mariana project. 2025 production reached the upper end of the guidance range of 30,000-35,000 tons, representing a 34% increase year-over-year compared to 2024. Cost of sales in the fourth quarter of 2025 was US$66 million, with cash operating costs for lithium carbonate at US$5,618 per ton. The reduction in operating costs was driven by structural optimization and operational efficiency improvements, with these cost-saving effects expected to be sustainable. Revenue in the fourth quarter of 2025 was US$92 million, with an average realized selling price for lithium carbonate of approximately US$9,049 per ton. Due to a significant increase in market prices since late 2025, the average realized selling price for lithium carbonate in the first quarter of 2026 is expected to be approximately US$17,000 per ton. 2026 production guidance for lithium carbonate is set at 35,000-40,000 tons. With continued optimization and lean operations, production is expected to steadily increase in 2026, supporting the project's long-term operational performance. Regarding the PPG project and Cauchari-Olaroz expansion: Cauchari-Olaroz Stage 2 Expansion: The Cauchari-Olaroz project is advancing expansion plans, aiming to add 45,000 tons per year of lithium carbonate production capacity. Measured and indicated lithium resources increased by 42%, reaching 28.1 million tons of lithium carbonate equivalent, with an average lithium grade of 562 mg/L. Leveraging the better-than-expected operational performance of the Cauchari-Olaroz project, the 5,000-ton-per-year DLE plant will continue to be built, with the first unit to be deployed at Ganfeng Lithium's adjacent Mariana project for technology integration and operational validation. The Stage 2 expansion plan, incorporating DLE technology, is expected to be completed by mid-2026. The application for the Large Investment Incentive Regime (RIGI) and the environmental permit for the Stage 2 project were both submitted in December 2025. PPG Project: Three-phase integrated development, with a total target capacity of 150,000 tonnes/year LCE PPG is expected to have an annual capacity of 25,000 tonnes when it begins production in 2029, subsequently increasing to 50,000 tonnes in 2031, 100,000 tonnes in 2034, and reaching the design capacity of 150,000 tonnes/year in 2038. The detailed preliminary study was completed in December 2025. Based on the assumption of a lithium carbonate price of US$18,000/tonne, the project's after-tax net present value (at an 8% discount rate) is US$8.1 billion, with an internal rate of return (IRR) of 33%. Phase 1 environmental permit was obtained in November 2025, and the RIGI application was submitted in February 2026. Integration of the new joint venture company for the PPG project has been largely completed, with the closing expected in the second quarter of 2026. Ganfeng Lithium and Lithium Argentina are in discussions with potential customers and strategic partners on financing solutions, while simultaneously advancing offtake and minority equity cooperation. The company is considering applying for a secondary listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) or the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX), to broaden its investor base in the Asia-Pacific region while maintaining its listing on the New York Stock Exchange. Source: Lithium Argentina official website, compiled by SMM

On December 1st, Endeavour Silver Corp. announced the launch of a private offering of US$300 million in unsecured convertible senior notes due 2031, with an option for initial purchasers to buy an additional US$45 million. The company plans to use the proceeds to repay its senior secured credit facility with ING Capital and Societe Générale, to advance the Pitarrilla silver project in Durango, Mexico, and for general corporate and strategic purposes. The Notes will pay semi-annual cash interest at a fixed rate and will be convertible into Endeavour common shares. They may be redeemed by the company under certain conditions, while holders will also have the right to require repurchase upon specified events. The Offering is subject to customary closing conditions, including approvals from the Toronto Stock Exchange and New York Stock Exchange. The Notes and underlying shares are unregistered under U.S. and Canadian securities laws and will be offered only to qualified institutional buyers (Rule 144A) in the U.S. and non-U.S. investors under Regulation S.

Recently, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (hereinafter referred to as "Freeport"), the largest copper producer in North America, stated that despite US President Trump's earlier claim that the copper tariffs he threatened to impose could support the US copper industry, the actual outcome might be counterproductive—tariffs could impact the economy, leading to a decline in copper demand, which would in turn be detrimental to the industry. Broad tariffs may instead dampen copper demand In recent times, US President Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on copper to drive the recovery of domestic industries. In late February this year, Trump instructed the US Secretary of Commerce to launch an investigation into foreign copper imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act and submit a report within 270 days. As the largest copper producer in North America, the imposition of tariffs on copper imports by the US should have been a positive development for Freeport, as the company could profit by selling copper at a premium. However, the company's CEO has warned that tariffs could also have a negative impact on the company. "If global economic growth is hindered, it could impact copper prices," Kathleen Quirk, CEO of Freeport, said in an interview. "Ironically, if we try to build up the US copper industry, slower GDP growth and inflation could put significant pressure on copper mines here." Quirk claimed that the US copper industry is currently in a turbulent period. As many industries and applications, including automotive, consumer electronics, and residential construction, are highly dependent on copper, copper tariffs could impose high costs on various sectors of the US economy. Copper tariffs have both positive and negative implications for the company Under Trump's tariff threats, US copper prices have been pushed higher than those in other markets. Currently, copper prices on the Comex are about 9.3% higher than those on the London Metal Exchange (LME), providing traders and producers with greater incentive to continue shifting supplies to the US before potential copper tariffs take effect. In April this year, the premium for copper on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) relative to the LME even reached 13% at one point. At that time, Freeport claimed that such a level was equivalent to a financial benefit of approximately $800 million per year from its copper sales. Freeport owns seven open-pit mines and one smelter in the US, which means it produces about 70% of the refined copper in the country. Quirk stated, "We do benefit from copper tariffs because they raise the price of our copper in the US domestic market... but if there are hefty tariffs and a trade war, we will be concerned about global demand for copper." Quark stated that she maintains a "neutral" stance on copper tariff policies, believing that copper import tariffs have both advantages and disadvantages for her. She noted that Freeport also has copper production sites in Indonesia, Spain, Peru, and Chile, and that tariff-driven trade wars could harm market demand for copper. Compared to tariffs, Freeport has called on the Trump administration to adopt other incentives to promote copper mining in the US, such as the tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act—a benefit that US lithium and nickel miners are already eligible for. "The cost structure in the US is higher than globally," Quark said. "Therefore, if you want to protect this industry, you need to consider how to incentivize it."

On Thursday, US Eastern Time, the US stock market moved downwards after a higher opening, with all three major indices closing lower. Tesla's share price plummeted, dragging down the Nasdaq and S&P 500 indices. (Minute-by-minute charts of the three major indices, source: TradingView) By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.25% to 42,319.74 points; the S&P 500 dropped 0.53% to 5,939.30 points; and the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.83% to 19,298.45 points. Tesla was one of the worst-performing stocks on Thursday, plunging over 14% and seeing its market capitalization fall below $1 trillion. US President Donald Trump publicly expressed on Thursday that he was "very disappointed" with Tesla CEO Elon Musk. Musk later hit back on social media platform X, saying, "Without me, Trump wouldn't have won the election." The dispute between the two continued to escalate, with Trump later calling Musk "crazy" and hinting at the possibility of canceling government contracts for Tesla and its affiliated companies. Economic data released on Thursday was mixed. The US trade deficit in April narrowed to $61.6 billion, a larger decline than economists had expected. This followed a record-high trade deficit in March, as companies stockpiled goods ahead of tariff implementation. However, data from the US Department of Labor showed that initial jobless claims rose last week to their highest level since October last year. Despite investors' calm reaction to recent tariff news, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink said at a conference in New York that he expects trade tariffs to impact the economy later this year. "If tariffs are truly implemented in the next five months, I think we will see very serious inflation," Fink warned. Performance of Popular Stocks Most large-cap tech stocks fell, with Apple down 1.08%, Microsoft up 0.82%, Nvidia down 1.36%, Google up 0.10%, Amazon up 0.33%, Meta down 0.48%, and Tesla down 14.26%. Popular Chinese ADRs showed mixed performance. The Nasdaq Golden Dragon China Index rose 0.54%, with Alibaba up 0.43%, JD.com down 0.72%, Pinduoduo down 0.32%, NIO down 3.47%, XPeng Motors down 1.91%, Li Auto down 0.64%, Bilibili up 1.15%, Baidu up 1.13%, NetEase up 1.11%, and Tencent Music up 0.45%. Company News [Musk Says SpaceX Will Immediately Retire Dragon Spacecraft in Response to Trump's Contract Cancellation Threat] Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX, stated that in light of US President Donald Trump's statement about canceling government contracts, SpaceX will immediately begin retiring its Dragon spacecraft. It is understood that current US manned space activities heavily rely on SpaceX's Crew Dragon spacecraft. [Apple: App Store Generated $1.3 Trillion in Developer Revenue and Sales in 2024] On June 5, Apple announced that research showed the global App Store generated a total of $1.3 trillion in developer revenue and sales in 2024. Driven by increased demand for online food delivery and pickup, as well as grocery orders, sales of physical goods and services exceeded $1 trillion. Revenue from in-app display advertising by developers reached $150 billion. [Trump Media & Technology Group Files for Bitcoin ETF, Aims to List on NYSE] On Thursday local time, publicly listed firm Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT) announced in a statement that it had submitted an S-1 registration document to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for the issuance of the "Truth Social Bitcoin ETF," and plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) after completing the approval process. The statement indicated that the ETF will directly hold Bitcoin and issue shares to investors, aiming to reflect the price performance of Bitcoin. Yorkville America Digital will serve as the fund sponsor, responsible for regulatory compliance and operational management. Although there is no specific approval deadline for the S-1 filing, the NYSE has already submitted the 19b-4 filing for this ETF on Tuesday, and the US SEC is required to make a final approval decision within 240 days. Therefore, conservatively estimated, the Trump family's Bitcoin ETF will be listed before early next year. [Microsoft CEO: Relationship with OpenAI is Adjusting, but Collaboration Remains Strong] Satya Nadella, CEO of tech giant Microsoft, recently stated that the important partnership between Microsoft and OpenAI is indeed evolving, but remains strong. In an interview with the media, Nadella said, "It's clear that any company transitioning from a research lab to one of the most successful products of our time must undergo some changes. They, us, and our partnership will all evolve."

According to a report from Mining.com, Harmony Gold, South Africa's largest gold producer, has agreed to acquire MAC Copper for US$1.03 billion, accelerating the company's strategic shift towards copper through a key asset in Australia. The all-cash acquisition will give Harmony full ownership of MAC Copper's sole asset, the CSA copper mine located in central-western New South Wales. CSA is Australia's highest-grade and oldest operating copper mine, dating back 150 years. With a mining depth reaching 1,900 meters, CSA is one of Australia's deepest underground mines. Harmony has offered to acquire MAC's shares at US$12.25 per share, a 20.7% premium over MAC's latest closing price on the New York Stock Exchange. MAC's board of directors unanimously supports the acquisition. Like Newmont and Barrick Gold, Harmony is also implementing a diversification strategy. The company is considering entering the copper market, a metal crucial for electric vehicles and power grid infrastructure. This transaction will expand Harmony's copper assets in Australia, following its purchase of the Eva copper mine project in Queensland in 2022. The Johannesburg-based mining company aims to bring Eva into production by 2028. With the addition of CSA and Eva, Harmony hopes to achieve an annual copper production of 100,000 mt within five years. Last year, CSA alone produced 41,000 mt of copper. Outside of Australia, Harmony also owns the Hidden Valley gold mine in Papua New Guinea and co-owns the Wafi-Golpu copper-gold mine with Newmont. The company is moving away from a single-focus gold mining model, as mining metals in South Africa has become increasingly complex and costly.

In April, the automotive consumer market gradually became more active, stimulated by the Shanghai Auto Show. New car models made their debuts in quick succession, consumer policies continued to be strengthened, and automakers rolled out various sales promotion strategies. Riding the wave of the consumer market, the sales of major new energy vehicle (NEV) automakers also surged, showing a generally positive growth trend. Data source: CPCA & automakers' official sources The "Leap, XPeng, Li Auto" pattern was further consolidated, with NIO continuing to recover. Since December last year, the top three positions in NEV sales have been alternately occupied by Leap Motor, XPeng Motors, and Li Auto. Among them, Leap Motor has held the top spot in sales for three consecutive months since March this year, with its "full-stack in-house R&D + cost control" strategy increasingly validated by sales data. In April, Leap Motor sold a total of 41,000 vehicles, up 173% YoY and 10.6% MoM, making it the only NEV brand to exceed 40,000 units in sales. In terms of sales, the more comprehensive C-series car models remained Leap Motor's sales mainstay, with the T03 and the newly launched B10 also showing relatively objective performance, contributing 9,000 and 6,648 units in sales, respectively. It is worth mentioning that the B10 achieved mass production and exceeded 10,000 units within 16 days of its launch. The Leap C10, leveraging a "low price with high specs" strategy, entered the 150,000-yuan-class SUV market, becoming a benchmark in this segment. Since its launch in March last year, it has surpassed the 100,000-unit sales milestone within a year. XPeng Motors' sales have been relatively stable over the past six months, being the only NEV automaker with a consistent delivery volume exceeding 30,000 units for six consecutive months. In April, it delivered a total of 35,000 new vehicles, up 273.1% YoY and 5.5% MoM. Among them, the mainstay car model, the XPeng MONA M03, sold 14,200 units, while the XPeng P7+ sold 7,391 units. It is worth noting that since its launch in August last year, the XPeng MONA M03 has accumulated over 100,000 deliveries, and the XPeng P7+ has also achieved 50,000 units in production within five months of its launch. NIO's sales in April reached 23,900 units, up 53.01% YoY and 58.9% MoM. Among them, NIO sold 19,300 units, and Lido (a sub-brand of NIO) sold 4,400 units. The mainstay car models remained the NIO ES6 and ET5T, accounting for 35.6% and 31.2% of NIO's total April sales, respectively. In contrast to the top three, Li Auto's sales growth has slowed down. In April, Li Auto delivered 34,000 new vehicles, up 31.61% YoY but down 7.5% MoM. Among them, the Li Auto L6 accounted for nearly half of the total sales, followed by the Li Auto L7, which sold 8,102 units. It is evident that Li Auto's main issues lie in the sluggish growth of its extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) models and the lagging layout of its battery electric vehicle (BEV) models. On one hand, as the market and technology evolve, the overall EREV market is facing pressure from BEVs. On the other hand, more cost-effective "half-price Li Auto" models are hot on Li Auto's heels. For Li Auto, accelerating the layout of the BEV market is of utmost urgency. After overcoming the silent period for BEVs brought about by the MEGA, Li Auto has already picked up the pace in the BEV market. It is expected to launch the medium-to-large-sized BEV SUV, the Li Auto i8, in July, and the Li Auto i6 around October. On May 21, 2025, multiple sources reported that Li Auto's annual sales target had been adjusted from 700,000 units set at the beginning of the year to 640,000 units. Among this, the target for the EREV L-series is 520,000 units, and the target for BEV products is 120,000 units. Currently, Li Auto's cumulative sales from January to April stand at 128,600 units, achieving 19.8% of the sales target. For the remainder of 2025, although the EREV market will continue to face further pressure from the BEV market, it will still be Li Auto's main sales driver in the short term. In terms of BEVs, Li Auto currently only has the MEGA model available for sale. To achieve the annual sales target of 120,000 BEVs, the upcoming i8 and i6 models have a significant burden to carry. Currently, Leap Motor's product lineup spans from the T03 compact car to the C-series models. Additionally, with the upcoming launch of the B-series models targeting younger consumers this year, Leap Motor has further strengthened its market share. Furthermore, Leap Motor's overseas sales performance is also noteworthy. According to relevant data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Leap Motor's cumulative export sales from January to April 2025 exceeded 13,600 units, ranking it No.1 among China's new energy vehicle brands. At the same time, Leap Motor and Stellantis are about to launch a local assembly project in Malaysia and plan to commence localized production of the C10 by the end of this year. With a deepened global layout, Leap Motor's future production and sales volumes are expected to enter the next phase. Leap Motor's sales target for this year is 500,000-600,000 units. So far, its cumulative sales for the year stand at 128,600 units. If calculated based on an annual sales target of 500,000 units, Leap Motor has already achieved 25.7% of its annual sales target. This year, the B-series lineup will include three models. In addition to the B10, there will also be the compact sedan B01 and the two-box hatchback B05, which will be unveiled in July and November, respectively. The C-series models will also undergo a comprehensive refresh. Additionally, the full-size flagship D-series model is expected to be unveiled by the end of the year. With a sufficient lineup of new models and an expanded overseas presence, achieving the sales target of 500,000-600,000 units will not be difficult for Leap Motor. Li Bin previously projected that NIO's sales would double in 2025, setting an annual sales target of 444,000 units. However, NIO's cumulative sales so far this year have only reached 66,000 units, leaving a significant gap from the target. In Li Bin's plan, the LEAPTO brand was supposed to boost sales, but its average monthly sales of 5,000 units since its launch have fallen far short of expectations. The third brand, firefly, was launched on April 19, and its subsequent sales performance remains to be seen. Similarly positioned as a second-brand model, the XPeng MONA M03 has made a substantial contribution to XPeng Motors' sales. From January to April this year, XPeng Motors delivered a cumulative 129,000 units, with the MONA M03 accounting for 47.5% of the total. At the end of last year, XPeng disclosed a sales target of 350,000 units for 2025. However, given the sales performance in the first quarter of this year, He Xiaopeng stated during the earnings call in March, "This year's sales will more than double compared to 2024." Based on the latest target of 380,000 units, XPeng Motors has already achieved 33.9% of its sales target from January to April. Xiaomi remains resilient, while AITO M8's firm orders exceed 80,000 Compared to automakers like "Lixiang, XPeng, and NIO" that have experienced relatively calm periods, April was a "stormy" month for Xiaomi EV. Since the SU7 accident on the Anhui Expressway in late March, Xiaomi EV has been embroiled in a public relations crisis and a period of promotional silence lasting over a month. Additionally, following the SU7 incident, there were controversies such as "horsepower locking" and false advertising claims about the carbon fiber hood. Despite the recent negative publicity affecting Xiaomi's sales to some extent, Xiaomi's sales in April remained strong, with the SU7 alone achieving 28,000 units in sales, down slightly by 3.4% MoM. The Xiaomi SU7 also became the top-selling pure EV in April. For Avatr, April, while not as gloomy as for Xiaomi, was marked by a controversy over wind resistance, making it a trending topic and a subject of public discussion. However, for consumers, such discussions did not affect their choice of Avatr. In April, Avatr sold 11,700 units, up 122.6% YoY. The main models were the Avatr 06 and Avatr 07. In particular, the Avatr 06, which was launched on April 19, received 12,500 firm orders within 48 hours of its launch, accounting for 47.04% of the total sales in April. Compared to Xiaomi and Avatr, Neta Auto is facing even greater challenges. On May 13, the National Enterprise Bankruptcy Reorganization Case Information Network disclosed that Hozon New Energy, the parent company of Neta Auto, New Energy had been petitioned for bankruptcy review by an advertising company. Since October last year, Neta Auto has officially ceased updating its monthly sales data. According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Neta's sales from January to February this year were 1,200 units. Previously, Neta had been repeatedly reported to be insolvent, with its market share shrinking to less than 2%. The industry generally believes that if Neta Auto fails to secure new financing, bankruptcy or integration is inevitable sooner or later. AITO, which is also in the midst of public scrutiny, had its sales data announced by Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) in February this year, with 12,500 M9 units and 8,443 M7 units delivered. However, there was a discrepancy with the 18,000 NEV sales reported by Seres in its January production and sales bulletin. NEV Seres responded to this discrepancy, stating, "The difference in sales data is mainly due to the different statistical methods used by Seres and HIMA," and indicated that it would "not respond" to the sales data released by HIMA. In March and April, HIMA did not disclose any further sales data for AITO. According to CPCA data, AITO's sales in April reached 27,000 units, up 7.34% YoY. Among them, AITO M9 sales were 13,100 units, accounting for 48.6% of the total sales. There is no definitive information regarding AITO's 2025 sales target, but HIMA's overall annual sales target for its "four brands" is to reach one million units. From January to April this year, AITO's cumulative sales were 72,300 units. From another perspective, AITO has certain sales potential. Since its launch on April 16, the AITO M8 has consistently set new highs in firm orders. As of May 20, the AITO M8's firm orders have exceeded 80,000 units. However, it is currently facing capacity and delivery issues. From May 5 to May 11, 2025, 1,200 AITO M8 units were delivered, and from May 12 to May 18, 2025, 1,400 units were delivered. If the capacity issues are resolved, AITO's sales prospects remain promising. Whether HIMA can achieve its goal of one million units in sales depends not only on AITO but also on the cooperation of the other "three brands." This year, Xiaomi Auto has set an annual sales target of 300,000 units, averaging 25,000 units per month. Currently, Xiaomi Auto's cumulative sales from January to April are 104,500 units, achieving an average monthly sales volume of 10,000 units. Moreover, compared to other new energy vehicle manufacturers with relatively complete product lineups, Xiaomi currently only has one car model, the SU7, on the market. Xiaomi's second car, the Xiaomi YU7, is positioned as a mid-to-large-sized SUV, directly competing with the Model Y. It is expected to be launched in June or July this year, with pricing continuing to follow Xiaomi's strategy of "high specs at low prices" to gain a price advantage. If the Xiaomi YU7 is launched as scheduled, Xiaomi has a high possibility of exceeding its 2025 sales target. This is also attributed to Xiaomi's channel expansion capabilities. In April this year, Xiaomi Motors added 34 new stores, expanding its nationwide presence to 269 stores across 74 cities, and also opened 5 new service outlets. Since May last year, the number of Xiaomi stores has been growing at a visible pace. Similar to Xiaomi, Avatr has achieved a relatively impressive target completion rate. Avatr set a sales target of 220,000 units for 2025. As of now, Avatr has delivered a total of 29,500 units, accounting for 13.39% of the annual sales target. In addition to the Avatr 06, which became the most-traded contract upon its launch, the Avatr 11 and Avatr 12 were also refreshed and launched in April and May, respectively. In the coming months, Avatr's sales are expected to see significant growth. However, to achieve the annual sales target, Avatr still needs to make efforts. New Forces in Independent Brands , with mixed fortunes After the integration of Zeekr and Lynk & Co, Zeekr Technology Group achieved total sales of 41,300 units. However, Zeekr's sales in April were only 13,700 units, down 14.7% YoY, indicating relatively weak performance. Currently, Zeekr lacks a car model with stable monthly sales exceeding 10,000 units. The former most-traded contract, the Zeekr 001, has seen sluggish sales since the beginning of this year, failing to regain its past glory. The Zeekr 007GT was launched on April 15 and achieved 10,000 units off the production line by May 15. Its subsequent sales performance is worth anticipating. VOYAH Motors achieved sales of 10,020 units in April, up 150% YoY. The main selling model is the VOYAH Dreamer, followed by the VOYAH FREE. On February 19, VOYAH Motors officially launched two new versions of the VOYAH Dreamer: the All-Wheel Drive Excellence Qiankun Edition and the All-Wheel Drive Premium Qiankun Edition. The launch of these new models has increased the monthly sales of the VOYAH Dreamer by more than 50%. In addition, at this year's Shanghai Auto Show, the VOYAH FREE + also underwent a refresh and upgrade, featuring the intelligent combination of " Huawei Qiankun Intelligent Driving ADS 4.0 + HarmonyOS Cockpit 5" and will start pre-sales in June. As an upgraded version of the VOYAH FREE, the second best-selling model of the VOYAH brand, the subsequent sales performance of the VOYAH FREE + is worth anticipating. Since the beginning of 2025, VOYAH's cumulative sales have reached 36,100 units, completing 18% of the annual sales target of 200,000 units. Based on the current sales performance of the new VOYAH Dreamer and the product strength of the FREE +, the realization of the annual sales target is relatively optimistic. Deepal achieved a total delivery volume of 20,100 units across its entire lineup in April, up 58% YoY but down 17.4% MoM. The former most-traded contract, the SL03, continued to perform poorly, with sales in April failing to reach 1,000 units, a sharp drop of 79% YoY. In addition, the sales performance of the S07 this year has also fallen short of expectations. From January to April this year, Deepal's cumulative sales reached 87,800 units. The automaker has set an annual sales target of 500,000 units for 2025, and has currently achieved 17.6% of this target. However, the new 2025 car models such as the Deepal SL03, L07, and S07 have not significantly boosted overall sales. Whether Deepal can achieve the annual sales target of 500,000 units in 2025 remains uncertain. Additionally, Deepal is still operating at a loss, with cumulative losses of 4.57 billion yuan over the past two years. It has long relied on technological support from Changan. If sales cannot continue to grow and surpass the profitability threshold, the loss-making situation will be difficult to reverse. An analyst warned, "If Deepal fails to reduce losses in 2025, it may face strategic contraction." Zeekr has set a sales target of 320,000 units for 2025, with cumulative sales currently at 55,100 units, achieving 18.4% of the target. The integration of Zeekr and Lynk & Co aims to eliminate internal friction. Zeekr focuses on the luxury market, while Lynk & Co covers the mid-to-high-end market, forming technological synergies. Currently, the integration of Zeekr and Lynk & Co is still in its early stages, with some integration issues. Additionally, Geely has announced a proposal to privatize Zeekr, acquiring all issued and outstanding shares of Zeekr and American Depositary Shares. If the privatization proposal is implemented and completed, Zeekr will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Geely Auto, achieving privatization and delisting from the New York Stock Exchange. Li Shufu, Chairman of Geely Holding Group, stated, "Facing fierce market competition and an increasingly complex economic environment, we will assess the situation and, in line with the spirit of the Taizhou Declaration, continue to promote the integration of our automotive business, returning to a unified Geely. We will integrate technological advantages, enhance innovation and profitability, continuously create long-term value, and build a globally leading smart EV group." In the long run, Geely Group's technological synergies and resource sharing are expected to enhance Zeekr's competitiveness. After the integration dividends are released, Zeekr is expected to leverage its luxury market positioning and technological assets to achieve sales growth. For automakers, sales are like a mirror, reflecting their past actions, current status, and even future development trends. In the first month of Q2, most new energy vehicle (NEV) automakers have achieved impressive sales results, laying the groundwork for sales growth in the coming months. We look forward to a thriving automotive market in Q2.

The People's Bank of China will strengthen macroeconomic regulation and control, and introduce a package of monetary policy measures, mainly consisting of three categories and ten policies.

SMM April 18 News: Metal Market: As of the daytime close, most base metals in the domestic market rose, with only SHFE tin recording a decline, down by around 0.25%. SHFE lead led the gains with a 1.05% increase, while other metals rose by less than 1%. The main alumina contract fell by 2.19%. Additionally, the main silicon metal contract dropped by 3.43%, the main polysilicon contract fell by 6.35%, and the main lithium carbonate contract declined by 0.34%. The main European container shipping contract decreased by 1.11%. In the ferrous metals series, all products fell, with iron ore leading the decline at 1.76%, rebar down by 0.81%, and stainless steel down by 0.62%. In the coking coal and coke sector, coking coal fell by 0.68%, and coke dropped by 0.35%. In the overseas metal market, LME base metals were closed for one day due to Good Friday. In the precious metals sector, COMEX gold and COMEX silver suspended trading for the entire day due to Good Friday. Domestically, SHFE gold rose by 0.29%, marking nine consecutive days of gains. SHFE silver fell by 0.6%. As of 15:04 today, Click to view the SMM market board. Macro Front: Domestic: [MIIT Plans to Introduce a New Round of Growth Stabilization and Digital Transformation Plans for Machinery, Automotive, and Electronic Equipment Industries] At a routine press conference on economic data held by the State Council Information Office, Tao Qing, Director of the Operation Monitoring and Coordination Bureau of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, stated that in Q1, nearly 70% of key products in the equipment industry achieved production growth, with the growth rate reaching 69.2%, an increase of 16.7 percentage points compared to the same period last year. The next step for MIIT is to introduce a new round of growth stabilization work plans for the machinery, automotive, and electronic equipment industries, promote technological transformation and equipment renewal in key industries, and expand effective demand from both supply and demand sides. Deepen the implementation of supply-demand matching and promotion actions such as "Industrial Mother Machine+", "Robot+", and high-end medical equipment, continuously enhancing the resilience and security level of key industry chains and supply chains. Introduce digital transformation implementation plans for related industries. [Central Bank Conducts a Net Injection of 222 Billion Yuan in Open Market Operations] The central bank conducted 250.5 billion yuan in 7-day reverse repo operations today, with the operation rate at 1.50%, unchanged from previous. As 28.5 billion yuan in 7-day reverse repos matured today, a net injection of 222 billion yuan was achieved. ► On April 18, the central parity rate of the RMB in the interbank foreign exchange market was 7.2069 yuan per US dollar. US Dollar: As of 15:04, the US dollar index fell by 0.02%. The number of initial jobless claims in the US for the week ending April 12 was 215,000, the lowest since the week of February 8, 2025. Despite tariff uncertainties making businesses cautious about expanding hiring, companies have not turned to large-scale layoffs. US "soft data" continues to deteriorate, with the Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Index for April at -26.4, the lowest since April 2023, against expectations of 2 and a previous value of 12.5. New York Fed President Williams stated that due to the Trump administration's tariff measures potentially pushing up inflation, weakening economic growth, and increasing unemployment, he believes there is no immediate need for the US Fed to adjust interest rate policies. (Wenhua Comprehensive) Data: Today, China's March year-on-year monthly total electricity consumption, China's March monthly total electricity consumption, Japan's March national CPI year-on-year, Japan's March national core CPI year-on-year, and New Zealand's March trade balance will be released. Additionally, on April 18, the New York Stock Exchange, Sydney Stock Exchange, Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Paris Stock Exchange, Milan Stock Exchange, Madrid Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Hong Kong Stock Exchange were closed for one day due to Good Friday. CME suspended trading for the entire day in precious metals, US crude oil, foreign exchange, and stock index futures contracts due to Good Friday, and ICE suspended trading for the entire day in Brent crude oil futures contracts. Overseas exchange holiday arrangements are as follows: (All in Beijing Time) Crude Oil: US oil and Brent oil suspended trading for the entire day due to Good Friday. SMM Daily Review: ► April 18: SHFE aluminum rose first and then fell, aluminum billet processing fees fluctuated downward [Aluminum Billet Spot Daily Review] ► Downstream steel mills' inquiry activity was low, short-term high-grade NPI prices are under pressure [NPI Daily Review] ► [SMM MHP Daily Review] April 18: Indonesian MHP prices rebounded ► [SMM Nickel Sulphate Daily Review] April 18: Nickel sulphate prices remained stable ► Market sentiment is cautious, rare earth prices continue to fall [SMM Rare Earth Daily Review] ► Overseas markets closed, domestic silver prices consolidated sideways with strong risk aversion sentiment [SMM Daily Review]

SMM April 12 News: In the metal market, both domestic and overseas metal markets rose collectively overnight, with most overseas gains exceeding 1%. LME tin led the gains with a 2.73% increase, followed by LME copper, which rose 2.18%. LME aluminum, LME lead, and LME nickel all rose over 1%, with LME aluminum up 1.14%, LME lead up 1.03%, and LME nickel up 1.5%. On the domestic market, SHFE copper, SHFE tin, and SHFE nickel all rose over 1%, with SHFE copper up 1.26%, SHFE tin up 1.52%, and SHFE nickel up 1.48%. Other metals saw changes within 1%. Additionally, the main alumina contract rose 2.38%. In the ferrous metals series, most products rose overnight, with stainless steel up 0.87% and iron ore up 0.07%. Rebar remained flat at 3,126 yuan/mt. In the coking coal and coke sector, coking coal rose 0.11%, while coke fell 0.52%. In the precious metals sector, due to a weaker US dollar and trade disputes raising concerns about an economic recession, investors flocked to gold as a safe haven. COMEX gold rose 2.44% overnight, hitting a high of $3,263/oz, setting a new historical record. COMEX silver surged 4.67%. Domestically, SHFE gold rose 1.46%, reaching a high of 764.38 yuan/g, also setting a new record, while SHFE silver rose 2.79%. As of 9:21 AM on April 12, the overnight closing market conditions. Click to view the SMM futures data dashboard. On the macro front, domestically, the State Council Tariff Commission announced that starting from April 12, 2025, the tariff rate on imports originating from the US will increase from 84% to 125%. The Ministry of Commerce spokesperson responded to questions regarding China's countermeasures against the US's latest tariff hike, stating that the US's repeated imposition of excessively high tariffs on China has become a numbers game with no practical economic significance, only exposing the US's tactics of weaponizing tariffs and engaging in bullying. If the US continues this tariff numbers game, China will ignore it. However, if the US insists on substantially infringing on China's rights and interests, China will resolutely counter and engage to the end. The Ministry of Commerce spokesperson also responded to questions regarding China's additional lawsuit against US tariff measures at the WTO, stating that China will firmly defend its legitimate rights and interests and uphold the multilateral trading system and international economic order. China urges the US to immediately correct its wrong practices and cancel all unilateral tariff measures against China. As of April 10, consumers have purchased a total of 100.35 million home appliances under the trade-in policy. The Ministry of Commerce stated that it will further implement the decisions and deployments of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, guide localities to intensify efforts, optimize procedures, strengthen publicity, and promote the detailed implementation of the home appliance trade-in policy to achieve greater results. The China Semiconductor Industry Association issued an urgent notice on the "origin" determination rules for semiconductor products, stating that the origin of "integrated circuits" will be determined based on the four-digit tariff code change principle, with the wafer fabrication location recognized as the origin. This means that some semiconductor products fabricated in the US may face price increases due to tariffs. Some chip channel suppliers reported that many US chip companies have suspended quoting new orders. On the US dollar front, the US dollar index fell 1.13% overnight, hitting a low of 99, marking its fourth consecutive decline and reaching its lowest level since April 2022, with a weekly drop of 2.99%. The US's fluctuating tariff policies have shaken investors' confidence in the US dollar as a safe haven, with the US dollar falling to its lowest level against the Swiss franc in a decade and hitting a three-year low against the euro. Data shows that due to unease over trade tensions, US consumer confidence deteriorated sharply in April, while the 12-month inflation expectation surged to its highest level since 1981. US producer prices unexpectedly fell in March due to a significant drop in energy product costs, but import tariffs are expected to push inflation higher in the coming months. The US Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the PPI fell 0.4% MoM in March, with February's data revised to 0.1%. The PPI rose 2.7% YoY in March, compared to 3.2% in February. Data released by the US Labor Department on Thursday showed that initial jobless claims for the week ending April 5 were 223,000, in line with expectations, with the previous week's figure at 219,000. Continuing claims for the week ending March 29 were 1.85 million, compared to expectations of 1.882 million, with the previous week's figure revised from 1.903 million to 1.893 million. Initial jobless claims increased slightly last week, and this number may trend upward as companies respond to import tariff plans. While overall layoffs remain at historically low levels, hiring has been lukewarm, leading to prolonged unemployment for some. Meanwhile, tariff policies increase the likelihood of an economic recession in the next 12 months. Market participants are now betting that the US Fed will resume rate cuts in June and cut rates by approximately 90 basis points by the end of 2025. In other currencies, the US dollar fell 0.71% against the Swiss franc to 0.81795. The US dollar fell 0.24% against the Japanese yen to 144.05 yen, after hitting its lowest level since September 2024. The euro surged 0.85% to 1.12970 US dollars, after hitting its highest level since February 2022. The euro rose 0.27% against the British pound, while the British pound rose 0.67% against the US dollar to 1.30540 US dollars. In terms of data, next week in China, the March trade balance, March import and export YoY, March M2 money supply YoY, year-to-date social financing scale, year-to-date new yuan loans, April 15 MLF operation size, April 15 MLF interest rate, year-to-date urban fixed asset investment YoY, year-to-date industrial added value YoY, March total retail sales YoY, Q1 GDP YoY (single quarter), year-to-date Q1 GDP YoY, and March electricity consumption YoY will be released. In the US, the March New York Fed 1-year inflation expectation, March New York Fed 3-year inflation expectation, March New York Fed 1-year gold price expectation, April New York Fed manufacturing index, April New York Fed manufacturing future 6-month expectation index, March import price index YoY, March core retail sales MoM, March retail sales YoY, March retail sales control group MoM (seasonally adjusted), March industrial production MoM, March manufacturing production MoM, March manufacturing capacity utilization rate, March industrial production YoY (seasonally adjusted), March building permits annualized total initial value, initial jobless claims for the week ending April 12, and April Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index will be released. In the Eurozone, the April ZEW economic sentiment index, March total reserve assets, March core harmonized CPI YoY (unadjusted final), April ECB main refinancing rate, April ECB deposit facility rate, and April ECB marginal lending rate will be released. In the UK, the February unemployment rate (ILO standard), February three-month average earnings including bonuses YoY, March core CPI YoY, March retail price index YoY, and March unadjusted input PPI YoY will be released. In Australia, the ANZ consumer confidence index for the week ending April 13, March seasonally adjusted unemployment, and March employment change will be released. In Canada, the March Bank of Canada core CPI YoY (unadjusted), February manufacturing sales MoM, February new manufacturing orders MoM, and April 17 Bank of Canada overnight lending rate will be released. Japan's March seasonally adjusted merchandise trade balance, March merchandise exports (unadjusted), March national core CPI YoY, Germany's April ZEW economic sentiment index, New Zealand's March trade balance, and Q1 CPI YoY will also be released. Additionally, the State Council Information Office will hold a press conference on the national economic performance, and the National Bureau of Statistics will release the monthly report on residential sales prices in 70 major cities. US Fed Chair Powell will deliver a speech, the ECB will announce its interest rate decision, ECB President Lagarde will hold a monetary policy press conference, the Reserve Bank of Australia will release the minutes of its April monetary policy meeting, the Bank of Canada will announce its interest rate decision and monetary policy report, and 2026 FOMC voter and Cleveland Fed President Mester will participate in a Q&A session. Notably, on April 18, the New York Stock Exchange, Sydney Stock Exchange, Frankfurt Stock Exchange, Paris Stock Exchange, Milan Stock Exchange, Madrid Stock Exchange, London Stock Exchange, and Hong Kong Stock Exchange will be closed for Good Friday. CME will suspend trading for precious metals, US crude oil, foreign exchange, and stock index futures contracts for the entire day, and ICE will suspend trading for Brent crude oil futures contracts for the entire day. In the crude oil market, due to potential disruptions in Iranian oil exports, both WTI and Brent crude prices rose overnight, with WTI up 2.35% and Brent up 1.99%. Despite tightening supply prospects, concerns remain that trade disputes may reduce global trade volume and disrupt trade routes, thereby dragging down global economic growth and reducing oil demand. UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo stated that trade conflicts have impacted market sentiment and dragged down oil prices. Barclays remains cautious about near-term oil prices due to increased uncertainty from the recent sharp escalation in trade tensions. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) lowered its global economic growth forecast on Thursday and warned that tariffs could significantly impact oil prices, while also lowering its US and global oil demand estimates for this year and next. Baker Hughes, a US energy services company, reported in its closely watched report that the number of active oil rigs in the US recorded its largest weekly drop since June 2023, with the total number of oil and gas rigs falling for the third consecutive week. Data shows that as of the week ending April 11, the total number of oil and gas rigs, a leading indicator of future production, fell by 7 to 583, marking the largest weekly drop since June 2024. The number of active oil rigs fell by 9 to 480.

[Rio Tinto Completes Acquisition of Arcadium Lithium, Becoming a Major Lithium Producer with One of the World's Largest Lithium Resource Reserves] Rio Tinto Group has completed the $6.7 billion acquisition of Arcadium Lithium Corporation ("Arcadium Lithium"). Previously, the Royal Court of Jersey approved the scheme of arrangement on March 5. Rio Tinto is now the ultimate parent company of Arcadium Lithium, which will be renamed Rio Tinto Lithium and will integrate Rio Tinto's Rincon lithium mine project. (Rio Tinto Group)