Futures: Overnight, LME lead opened at $1,965/mt, fluctuating downward during the Asian session; it dipped to $1,948.5/mt upon entering the European session, but then rose due to a weakening US dollar index, touching a high of $1,976.5/mt before finally settling at $1,974.5/mt. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE lead 2603 contract opened at 16,665 yuan/mt, briefly touched a low of 16,560 yuan/mt early in the session, then rebounded as bears reduced positions, reaching a high of 16,680 yuan/mt before finally settling at 16,665 yuan/mt, up 0.48%, forming a doji star. On the macro front: As markets awaited a series of US economic data, a weaker US dollar made dollar-denominated commodities more attractive to overseas buyers; spot gold extended gains. The White House's Hassett predicted worsening employment: AI boosts productivity, reduces labor demand. Alphabet planned to raise about $15 billion by issuing US dollar bonds. China's Ministry of Commerce held a symposium with automakers: Multiple measures to promote the expansion and quality improvement of auto consumption. The Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Beijing Stock Exchanges announced a package of measures to optimize refinancing. Seven departments including the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security provided administrative guidance on employment to leading platform companies and courier firms. Three departments including the Ministry of Finance issued an announcement on tax incentives for re-exported cross-border e-commerce goods. : SHFE lead stopped falling and stabilized, but as the Chinese New Year holiday approached, logistics vehicles halted in some regions, leading to reduced shipments and quotations from suppliers. Only some cargoes self-picked up from primary lead smelters were quoted at premiums of 0-50 yuan/mt against the SMM #1 lead average price ex-works. In the secondary lead sector, more smelters were on holiday and reluctant to sell at low prices, with most enterprises suspending quotations; a few secondary refined lead offers were at discounts of 25 yuan/mt to premiums of 50 yuan/mt against the SMM #1 lead average price ex-works. Downstream enterprises generally entered the year-end wrap-up phase, with minimal inquiries, resulting in thin trading in the spot market. Inventory: On February 9, LME lead inventory decreased by 100 mt to 232,750 mt. As of February 9, SMM lead ingot social inventory across five regions rose to a five-month high. Today's lead price forecast: With previously in-transit lead ingots by rail concentratedly arriving at warehouses, social inventory of lead ingots increased significantly, mainly reflected in Jiangsu and Zhejiang region warehouses. Last week, lead prices fell, prompting lead-acid battery enterprises to conduct relatively concentrated stockpiling of lead ingots, leading to a noticeable decline in lead smelters' in-factory inventory. This week being the last before the Chinese New Year, the final batch of lead-acid battery enterprises will enter the holiday state, further weakening lead consumption. Meanwhile, with the start of the Spring Festival travel season, migrant workers have returned to their hometowns, and the number of vehicles in operation has gradually decreased. Currently, some regions no longer support road transportation. It is expected that the growth momentum of social inventory for lead ingots will slow down, and the inventory buildup of lead ingots is anticipated to be more reflected in the smelters' plant inventories. Overall, lead prices are in the doldrums ahead of the holiday. Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, other data are processed by SMM based on public information, market communication, and SMM's internal database model, for reference only and do not constitute decision-making advice.

Rick Rule, a seasoned investor and the president and CEO of Rule Investment Media, warned that the recent downturn in the US dollar is far from over. He predicts that within the next decade, the US dollar will lose 75% of its "purchasing power," while gold prices could surge to $12,000 per ounce.

[SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Macro and Fundamentals in a Tug-of-War, SHFE Zinc Price Maintains Fluctuating Trend] Overnight, SHFE zinc recorded a small bullish candlestick, with the 5-day moving average acting as resistance above and the lower band of the Bollinger Bands providing support below. Progress was made in the China-U.S. trade negotiations...

China Reform Holdings Corporation Ltd. and China Chengtong Holdings Group Ltd., two state-owned capital operation companies, successfully issued 39.5 billion yuan of special bonds for steady growth and expanded investment in the interbank market on the 9th, further supporting central state-owned enterprises in strengthening their investments in the "implementation of major national strategies and the development of security capabilities in key areas" and the "program of large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-ins," and continuing to make efforts in areas such as major equipment upgrades and technological transformations, major scientific and technological innovations, and major strategic emerging industries. This is the second batch of special bonds successfully issued by the two central state-owned enterprises since they were approved to issue special bonds with a total scale of 500 billion yuan last year. This batch of special bonds consists of 23 billion yuan issued by China Reform Holdings Corporation Ltd. and 16.5 billion yuan issued by China Chengtong Holdings Group Ltd., both with a maturity of 10 years and a final coupon rate of 2.09%.

SMM News on June 10: Metal Market: As of the daytime close, domestic market base metals showed mixed performance. SHFE zinc and SHFE nickel both fell by over 1%, with SHFE zinc down 1.27% and SHFE nickel down 1.06%. SHFE copper, SHFE lead, and SHFE tin all rose, with SHFE lead leading the gains with a 0.9% increase, SHFE copper up 0.27%, and SHFE tin up 0.21%. The main alumina contract fell by 0.31%, while the main cast aluminum alloy contract surged over 5% on its debut trading day, closing at 19,190 yuan/mt with a 4.49% increase as of the daytime close. 》Surged over 5% on debut! Cast aluminum alloy makes a "strong start" - can it sustain the momentum? [SMM Flash News] In addition, the main lithium carbonate contract rose by 0.16%, the main polysilicon contract fell by 0.83%, and the main silicon metal contract rose by 0.82%. The main European container shipping contract fell by 0.95%. The ferrous metals series showed mixed performance. Stainless steel fell by 1.46%, iron ore fell by 0.85%, and HRC closed flat at 3,089 yuan/mt. In the coking coal and coke segment, coking coal rose by 0.51% and coke rose by 0.48%. In the overseas market, as of 15:09, overseas market metals showed mixed performance. LME lead rose by 0.38%, LME copper fell by 0.44%, and LME tin fell by 0.42%. LME lead led the gains with a 0.38% increase, while the price fluctuations of other metals were relatively small. In the precious metals segment, as of 15:09, COMEX gold fell by 0.26% and COMEX silver fell by 0.6%. Domestically, SHFE gold fell by 0.03% and SHFE silver rose by 0.62%. Market movements as of 15:09 today 》Click to view SMM Market Dashboard Macro Front Domestic Aspect: [NDRC: Will propose a batch of major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood] The State Council Information Office held a press conference at 10 a.m. today, inviting Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary-General of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), and relevant officials from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Civil Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and National Health Commission to introduce policies on further safeguarding and improving people's livelihood and answer questions from reporters. Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary-General of the NDRC, stated at the press conference that the NDRC will implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee, work with all parties to prepare the "15th Five-Year Plan" based on thorough surveys, and propose a batch of major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood to incorporate people's livelihood construction into the national "15th Five-Year Plan" development blueprint. 》Click to view details [PBOC's Open Market Operations Net Withdraw 255.9 Billion Yuan Today] The PBOC conducted 198.6 billion yuan of 7-day reverse repo operations today. As 454.5 billion yuan of 7-day reverse repos matured today, a net withdrawal of 255.9 billion yuan was realized on the day. ► On June 10, the central parity rate of the RMB exchange rate in the interbank foreign exchange market was 7.1840 yuan per US dollar. US dollar side: As of 15:09, the US dollar index rose by 0.3% to 99.32. In the US, inflation expectations among the public pulled back in May, and the market held certain expectations for the US Fed to cut interest rates in H2. This week, US inflation data will be released, which is expected to provide more guidance on the direction of the US Fed's policy. A report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Monday showed that in May, US citizens' anxiety about the future inflation path eased somewhat, and their views on their personal financial situations became more optimistic. The New York Fed pointed out in its May Survey of Consumer Expectations report that inflation expectations across all timeframes it measures had pulled back. Respondents' one-year inflation expectation was 3.2%, compared to 3.6% in April; the three-year inflation expectation was 3%, compared to 3.2% in April; and the five-year inflation expectation was 2.6%, compared to 2.7% in April. Macro side: Today, data such as China's M2 money supply annual growth rate for May, China's total social financing for the year to date as of May, China's new RMB loans for the year to date as of May, the UK's unemployment rate for April (ILO standard), the UK's average weekly earnings including bonuses for the three months to April (annual growth rate), Australia's ANZ consumer confidence index for the week ending June 8, Switzerland's consumer confidence index for May (seasonally adjusted), and the Eurozone's Sentix investor confidence index for June will be released. In addition, the deadline for the EU's public consultation is June 10, 2025. This date marks the final window of peace before the EU considers imposing retaliatory tariffs on US goods worth up to 95 billion euros. He Lifeng visited the UK from June 8 to 13 and held the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism. Crude oil side: As of 15:09, oil prices in both markets rose together, with US crude oil up by 0.05% and Brent crude oil up by 0.13%. The market is looking forward to the results of the new round of China-US economic and trade talks. The overall macro atmosphere is optimistic, and oil prices continue to rebound towards the previous high resistance area. The progress of negotiations between the US and Iran on the nuclear agreement remains unclear, with significant differences between the two sides on key terms. US sanctions have caused buyers to waver in their procurement positions, and Iran's crude oil exports have been hindered. OPEC+ ended its voluntary production cut policy that had lasted for two and a half years in April this year, clearly formulating a production increase plan for May-July, and beginning a new round of production increase cycle. It may continue to maintain a daily production increase of 411,000 barrels in August-September. However, from the perspective of actual implementation, this production increase process has not been smooth. According to Bloomberg, the actual crude oil production of eight OPEC countries that planned to increase production in May only increased by 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) compared to April, far below the original target of 410,000 bpd. Among them, Saudi Arabia actually increased production by 110,000 bpd, while countries like Iraq, the UAE, and Kazakhstan, which often exceeded production quotas in the past, maintained relatively stable production levels this time, without further violations of the production agreement. Taking a comprehensive view of the data from April to May, the total actual production increase of OPEC+ over these two months was only 100,000 bpd, far from the planned target of 550,000 bpd. The implementation of OPEC's subsequent production increase plans may face significant challenges, and there is considerable uncertainty about whether the expected production increase targets can be achieved as scheduled. This also implies that the degree of supply surplus in the crude oil market may not be as severe as previously estimated by the market. (Wenhua Comprehensive) SMM Daily Review ► Stainless steel in the doldrums, raw materials under pressure, short-term nickel iron prices may be in the doldrums [NPI Daily Review] ► [SMM Nickel Sulphate Daily Review] On June 10, nickel salt prices remained stable. ► [SMM MHP Daily Review] On June 10, Indonesian MHP prices rose slightly.

SMM, June 10: Metal Market: As of the midday close, domestic base metals showed mixed performance. SHFE copper rose by 0.57%, SHFE zinc fell by 1.22%, SHFE aluminum dropped by 0.12%, SHFE lead increased by 0.87%, SHFE tin gained 0.44%, and SHFE nickel declined by 0.89%. In addition, the main continuous futures contract for foundry aluminum surged on its first trading day, closing up 4.63% by midday. Alumina rose by 0.38%. Lithium carbonate increased by 0.53%, silicon metal rose by 1.16%, and polysilicon fell by 0.22%. The ferrous metals series mostly rose, with iron ore down by 0.21%, rebar up by 0.13%, and HRC up by 0.19%. Stainless steel fell by 0.99%. For coking coal and coke: coking coal rose by 0.7%, and coke increased by 0.52%. In overseas metal markets, as of 11:46, LME metals were mostly down, with LME zinc falling by 0.3%, LME copper down by 0.37%, LME aluminum dropping by 0.36%, LME lead on par with $1,986.5/mt, LME tin declining by 0.23%, and LME nickel falling by 0.23%. In precious metals, as of 11:46, COMEX gold fell by 0.78%, and COMEX silver dropped by 0.4%. Domestically, SHFE gold fell by 0.55%, SHFE silver rose by 0.89%, and SHFE silver hit a new high since listing in the night session, reaching 9,020 yuan/kg. As of the midday close, the most-traded contract for the Europe Containerized Freight Index was on par with 2,061.8. As of 11:46 on June 10, midday futures market movements for some contracts: 》SMM Metal Spot Prices on June 10 Spot and Fundamentals Aluminum: This morning, the center of SHFE aluminum prices dropped to around 20,500 yuan/mt before reversing in a V-shaped trend, rising again above 20,100 yuan/mt. In east China, after the futures market fell, purchasing sentiment improved, and major players purchased in the market. The market traded at parity to a premium of 10 yuan/mt against SMM transactions, with premiums and discounts firming. Today, SMM A00 aluminum was reported at 20,160 yuan/mt, down 50 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, with a premium of 70 yuan/mt against the June contract, unchanged from the previous trading day... 》Click for details Macro Front Domestic: [National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC): Will propose a batch of major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood] The State Council Information Office held a press conference at 10 a.m. today. Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary General of the National Development and Reform Commission, and relevant officials from the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Civil Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and National Health Commission introduced policies to further safeguard and improve people's livelihood and answered questions from reporters. Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary General of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), stated at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office that the NDRC will implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee. Based on thorough surveys, it will collaborate with various parties to formulate the "15th Five-Year Plan," proposing major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood, and integrating the construction of people's livelihood into the national development blueprint for the "15th Five-Year Plan." 》Click for details [PBOC's Open Market Operations Net Withdraw 255.9 Billion Yuan Today] The PBOC conducted 198.6 billion yuan in 7-day reverse repo operations today. As 454.5 billion yuan in 7-day reverse repos matured today, a net withdrawal of 255.9 billion yuan was realized on the day. ► The central parity rate of the RMB exchange rate in the interbank foreign exchange market on June 10 was 7.1840 RMB per US dollar. US dollar: As of 11:46, the US dollar index rose by 0.13%, reporting at 99.15. A report released by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on Monday showed that US citizens' anxiety about the future inflation path eased in May, and their outlook on personal financial conditions became more optimistic. The market is awaiting the US inflation data to be released on Wednesday, which may adjust expectations regarding the timing of the US Fed's interest rate cut. Meanwhile, the market is also focusing on the ongoing China-US trade talks in London. Other currencies: Kazuo Ueda, Governor of the Bank of Japan, stated that if the economy and prices face strong downward pressure, the Bank of Japan has limited room to support the economy through interest rate cuts, with the short-term interest rate currently maintained at 0.5%. "If we have sufficient confidence that the underlying inflation rate is close to or fluctuating around 2%, we will raise interest rates." (Caijing) Data: Today, data such as China's M2 money supply annual growth rate for May, China's total social financing for the year to date in May, China's new RMB loans for the year to date in May, the UK's unemployment rate for April (ILO standard), the UK's average weekly earnings including bonuses for the three months to April (annual growth rate), Australia's ANZ consumer confidence index for the week ending June 8, Switzerland's consumer confidence index for May (seasonally adjusted), and the Eurozone's Sentix investor confidence index for June will be released. In addition, the deadline for the EU's public consultation is June 10, 2025. This date marks the final window of peace before the EU considers imposing retaliatory tariffs on US goods worth up to 95 billion euros. He Lifeng visited the UK from June 8 to 13 and held the first meeting of the China-US economic and trade consultation mechanism. Crude oil: As of 11:46, crude oil futures fluctuated rangebound, with US oil up by 0.11% and Brent oil up by 0.18%. The market is awaiting the outcome of Sino-US negotiations, which may help ease trade tensions and improve fuel demand. Additionally, a survey found that OPEC's oil production growth in May was lower than planned, as Iraq further cut production to compensate for earlier overproduction, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE also increased production by less than their quotas. (Webstock Inc.) Spot Market Overview: ► Copper prices rise, but downstream players are reluctant to rush to buy amid continuous price rise and restock; overall trading activity is weaker than yesterday. [SMM South China Spot Copper] ► Operating rates of processing enterprises recover, and market trading activity improves. [SMM North China Spot Copper] ► The center of gravity pulls back in the morning session, and just-in-time procurement in the market improves. [SMM Aluminum Spot Midday Review] ► Shanghai zinc: futures market declines significantly, and premiums struggle to rise. [SMM Midday Review] ► The pace of production resumptions in Myanmar's Wa region is slow; SHFE tin prices may fluctuate rangebound in the afternoon session. [SMM Tin Midday Review] ► [SMM Nickel Midday Review] On June 10, nickel prices fell by over 1,000 yuan, and China's CPI index declined by 0.2% MoM. Midday reviews of other metal spot prices will be updated later. Please refresh to view.

The State Council Information Office held a press conference at 10 a.m. today. Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary General of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), along with relevant officials from the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and the National Health Commission, introduced policies on further safeguarding and improving people's livelihoods, and answered questions from journalists. Ministry of Finance: Accelerating the Establishment and Implementation of a Childcare Subsidy System Ge Zhihao, head of the Social Security Department of the Ministry of Finance, stated at the State Council Information Office press conference that, in terms of services for the elderly and children, the Ministry of Finance actively collaborates with relevant departments to improve the elderly care and childcare service system, promotes community-supported home-based elderly care services, strengthens care services for the disabled elderly, facilitates the high-quality development of inclusive childcare services, and accelerates the establishment and implementation of a childcare subsidy system. Relevant work is being expedited to better meet the people's service needs for the elderly and children. This year, the national budgetary allocations for education, social security, and employment expenditures are both close to 4.5 trillion yuan. At the conference, Ge Zhihao introduced that people's livelihoods are closely related to the vital interests of the people. In 2025, fiscal investment in people's livelihoods will be further increased. The national budgetary allocations for education, social security, and employment expenditures are both close to 4.5 trillion yuan, with increases of 6.1% and 5.9%, respectively. Expenditures on health and other areas will also maintain relatively high growth rates, aiming to strengthen the "safety net" for people's livelihoods and continuously enhance the people's sense of gain, happiness, and security. Implementing National Pooling and Adjustment of Pension Insurance, Benefiting Over 300 Million Elderly People Ge Zhihao stated that the national monthly minimum basic pension standard for urban and rural residents borne by the state finance will be increased by another 20 yuan, and the basic pensions for retirees will also be appropriately raised. To ensure the timely and full payment of these benefits, the central finance will further increase subsidies this year and implement national pooling and adjustment of pension insurance, benefiting over 300 million elderly people. NDRC Deputy Secretary General: The Central Budgetary Investment Scale Supporting Social Undertakings This Year is Expected to Increase by Over 30% Compared to the End of the 13th Five-Year Plan Period Xiao Weiming, Deputy Secretary General of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), stated at the State Council Information Office press conference that the central budgetary investment scale supporting social undertakings this year is expected to increase by over 30% compared to the end of the 13th Five-Year Plan period. While organizing and implementing "hard investment" projects, the NDRC will also accelerate the introduction and implementation of measures for "soft construction," improve the dual-wheel drive of "projects + policies," promote the replacement of mechanisms through investment, and strive to fully realize the benefits of addressing weaknesses, expanding domestic demand, and benefiting people's livelihoods. A number of major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood will be proposed. Xiao Weiming stated that the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) will implement the decisions and arrangements of the CPC Central Committee. Based on thorough surveys, it will collaborate with various sectors to formulate the "15th Five-Year Plan," proposing a number of major strategic tasks, policy initiatives, and engineering projects in the field of people's livelihood, and integrating the construction of people's livelihood into the national development blueprint for the "15th Five-Year Plan." Enhance the overall coordination and systematic integration of people's livelihood policies, and improve the policy coordination mechanism. Xiao Weiming noted that people's livelihood work involves numerous aspects. Strengthening overall coordination and preventing policy fragmentation are essential to achieving a unified approach and joint efforts in advancing this work. The most prominent feature of the "Opinions" is the enhancement of the overall coordination and systematic integration of people's livelihood policies. The main implementing departments of the "Opinions" will strengthen interdepartmental coordination in three aspects: first, strengthening the guiding role of development plans and enhancing the strategic orientation of national development plans; second, improving the policy coordination mechanism and leveraging the coordinating role of comprehensive departments; third, balancing "hard investments" and "soft constructions." Focus on key issues in people's livelihood and propose targeted policies to ensure that the general public feels a tangible sense of gain. Xiao Weiming stated that the "Opinions on Further Ensuring and Improving People's Livelihood and Addressing Urgent Needs and Concerns of the Masses" propose not only enhancing fairness and balance in institutional construction such as strengthening social security and providing basic public services but also focusing on key issues in people's livelihood, such as ensuring access to quality education, healthcare, affordable elderly care and childcare services, and diversified social services. Targeted policy initiatives will be proposed to ensure that the general public feels a tangible sense of gain. Xiao Weiming cited examples, noting that to address the issue of increasing income for low-income rural populations, the "Opinions" clearly propose implementing actions to enhance skills and increase income for low-income rural populations. This involves promoting industrial development to facilitate employment, improving skills, strengthening development-oriented assistance, and helping low-income populations achieve prosperity through their own efforts. To ensure that basic pension insurance benefits urban and rural residents and improve the level of protection, the "Opinions" clearly propose optimizing the contribution tier settings for basic pension insurance for urban and rural residents, reasonably determining the level of contribution subsidies, and appropriately increasing the flexibility of contributions. Additionally, the "Opinions" propose orderly promoting the cross-provincial pooling of personal accounts in the basic medical insurance for employees, allowing more insured employees to transfer funds across provinces to relatives participating in basic medical insurance. Ministry of Education: Gradually achieve full coverage of standardized construction of compulsory education schools within about five years. Guo Peng, Director-General of the Department of Development Planning at the Ministry of Education, stated that in the field of basic education, the Ministry of Education will further improve the mechanism for coordinating and allocating educational resources in response to demographic changes, focusing on three main aspects. The first is "expanding the total capacity." We will focus on the prominent issue of insufficient high school places and build, renovate, or expand over 1,000 high-quality regular high schools. The second is "improving quality." We will gradually achieve full coverage of standardized construction of compulsory education schools within around five years. By implementing the "Yunnan Zhenxing Lead Industry Co., Ltd. {{Company}} Plan for County High Schools," we will focus on improving the basic schooling conditions and enhancing the educational standards of regular high schools in counties. The third is "promoting equity." We will reasonably plan the enrollment scales of regular high schools and secondary vocational schools, accelerate the expansion of the proportion of high-quality regular high school enrollment indicators allocated to schools, primarily distributing them to junior high schools within the region based on student numbers, and giving priority to rural and other schools. We will promote the enjoyment of equal rights for eligible agricultural migrant populations as those with household registration in the destination areas. We will coordinate the use of central budgetary investments and ultra-long-term special treasury bonds to support universities in continuously improving their schooling conditions. Guo Peng stated that in the field of higher education, this year's undergraduate enrollment expansion in "Double First-Class" universities is good news for students who have just taken the college entrance examination. Next, we will focus on promoting the improvement and expansion of higher education in three aspects. The first is "improving conditions." We will coordinate the use of central budgetary investments and ultra-long-term special treasury bonds to support universities in continuously improving their schooling conditions. The second is "optimizing structure." We will promote the appropriate allocation of new higher education resources to populous provinces in central and western China. We will support the establishment of new-type research universities and high-level Sino-foreign cooperative education institutions. The third is "integrating industry and education." We will guide universities to improve the mechanism for adjusting academic disciplines and majors based on the needs of economic and social development, strengthen practical training in industries and enterprises, and enhance students' employability and entrepreneurial capabilities. Ministry of Civil Affairs: Actively Promoting the Introduction of the Social Assistance Law to Provide Legal Support for Basic Livelihood Security Zhang Wei, head of the Social Assistance Department of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, stated at a State Council Information Office press conference that strengthening support for low-income groups is an important measure to ensure and improve basic livelihoods and address the urgent needs and concerns of people in difficulty. Next, the Ministry of Civil Affairs will further improve the social assistance system and mechanisms, strengthen policy implementation, and promote the fairer, more balanced, and sustainable implementation of various assistance and support measures for people in difficulty. Firstly, we will further expand the monitoring scope and accelerate the construction of a national dynamic monitoring information platform for low-income populations. At the same time, we will actively promote the introduction of the Social Assistance Law to provide strong legal support for basic livelihood security. Secondly, we will further strengthen digital empowerment, emphasize targeted assistance, and formulate methods for identifying low-income populations and verifying the economic status of low-income families. We will strengthen the sharing and comparison of social assistance information. Finally, the Ministry of Civil Affairs will further strengthen organizational coordination, give full play to the role of coordination mechanisms such as the joint meetings of social assistance work leading groups at all levels, strengthen the connection between government assistance and charitable support, and form the greatest possible assistance synergy. Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security: Lifting Residency Restrictions for Flexible Workers to Participate in Social Insurance in Their Place of Employment At a press conference, Zhai Yanli, Director of the Social Insurance Administration Center of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, stated that they will continue to deepen reforms in accordance with the requirements of the "Opinions," promote high-quality expansion of social insurance coverage, and focus on flexible workers, migrant workers, individuals in new forms of employment, and college graduates when formulating social insurance policies that better suit new employment patterns and income characteristics. They will implement the lifting of residency restrictions for flexible workers to participate in social insurance in their place of employment, adopt more flexible methods for social insurance contributions, and actively guide eligible flexible workers to participate in enterprise employee pension insurance in their place of employment or their place of household registration. They will steadily and orderly expand the pilot program for occupational injury insurance for individuals in new forms of employment, gradually expanding the pilot scope by improving policies such as premium rates. National Health Commission: Increasing the Supply of Inclusive Childcare Services Through Multiple Channels At a State Council Information Office press conference, Zhuang Ning, Director of the Department of Planning, Development, and Informatization of the National Health Commission, stated that in the next step, they will continue to adhere to the people-centered development philosophy and increase the supply of inclusive childcare services through multiple channels in three aspects. In terms of accelerating the construction of an inclusive childcare service system, they will build a "1+N" childcare service system with a comprehensive childcare service center as the hub and a network of childcare institutions, community-embedded childcare, kindergarten-based childcare, employer-provided childcare, and family childcare points to enhance inclusive childcare services. In terms of vigorously developing integrated childcare and early childhood education services, they will summarize local experiences and practices, coordinate resources for childcare services for children aged 0-6, improve supporting measures, support eligible kindergartens to offer childcare classes, and promote the coordinated and sustainable development of preschool education and childcare services. In terms of effectively improving the quality of childcare services, they will promote the support of medical institutions for the development of childcare services, guide various regions to advance the standardized and professional development of childcare services through measures such as renovating facilities and equipment of childcare service institutions, conducting quality assessments, providing personnel training, and implementing safety inspections, while ensuring safety and health standards.

Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker recently stated that, given the highly uncertain economic outlook, an interest rate cut is still possible this year. He also expressed concerns about the quality of economic data that US Fed officials use to make decisions. When asked about easing monetary policy, Harker claimed that it was possible and that he would never rule out such a possibility. "If the data shows that inflation is not rising rapidly, but unemployment is increasing, then one or more interest rate cuts this year are possible, though it is still difficult to determine at this point," he said. It is reported that Harker will retire at the end of June, and Anna Paulson, currently the director of research at the Chicago Fed, will succeed him. The US Fed's next meeting will be held from June 17 to 18, and it is widely expected that the central bank will keep its interest rate target unchanged within the range of 4.25% to 4.5%. Currently, it is uncertain what will happen next, as the chaotic trade policies of the Trump administration, particularly the ever-changing import tariffs, may lead to rising prices and reduced employment. The question facing US Fed officials is whether the price increases are one-time events or will have more long-term effects. These uncertainties have weakened the officials' ability to provide guidance on the monetary policy outlook, forcing them to adopt a wait-and-see attitude. Harker said, "We are becoming increasingly blind when it comes to key data. We are concerned that the quality of economic data is declining. Uncertainty makes it very difficult to forecast the monetary policy outlook." The reason for the concerns about data quality is that there have been reports that the Trump administration is cutting resources used to compile the closely watched Consumer Price Index (CPI), which affects things like wage adjustments in union contracts and the setting of social security benefits. Looking back on his ten-year career at the US Fed, Harker said that the period since Trump resumed the presidency has been more challenging than the pandemic era, when it was clearer, at least initially, what the US Fed needed to do to guide the economy. Looking ahead, Harker said it is crucial for the US Fed to better explain to the public what it can and cannot do. If it does not do so, its independence may be threatened due to the perception that the US Fed is omnipotent in economic matters. Harker said, "There is a sense that the US Fed is an omnipotent entity that controls your life, but that is not true. It is not like that, but to dispel this misunderstanding, we must simplify our explanations as much as possible, clarifying what we can do and what we cannot do.""I believe we must convey this message clearly and unambiguously," Harker claimed, stating that as the US financial system faces growing challenges, the deficit must be brought under control, and he is "very concerned" about the current state of government finances. "I am very concerned about the deficit. I don't think we are at risk yet, but if we don't take action, we will be in the near future." The central bank official pointed out that market pricing and leaders on Wall Street have begun to send warning signals that should not be ignored. Harker also mentioned that other parts of the world are striving to become competitors to the US financial system. He said that when it comes to putting government finances on a sounder footing, "we must work hard to ensure that our finances are in good shape."

The State Council Information Office will hold a press conference at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 10, 2025. Deputy Secretary General Xiao Weiming of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), along with relevant officials from the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, and the National Health Commission, will introduce policies on further safeguarding and improving people's livelihoods, and answer questions from journalists.

The US White House issued a statement saying that President Trump had signed an order to raise tariffs on imported steel, aluminum, and their derivative products from 25% to 50%, effective from 00:01 a.m. on the 4th, Eastern Time. The statement indicated that tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from the UK would remain at 25%.