It is worth noting that the overall overseas ternary cathode demand outlook for 2026 remains subdued. The U.S. market has been sluggish since the fourth quarter of last year, prompting many overseas manufacturers to place their hopes on the European market.

Based on China’s 2025 aluminum wire and cable export data to the Middle East, Saudi Arabia was the largest export destination in the region, with annual exports of 9,426.752 mt, accounting for 31.88 of the Middle East total

Middle East tensions have sparked a massive steel trade "mismatch." Iran's blocked exports created a 2.3-million-ton billet vacuum in Southeast Asia, while the Red Sea crisis stalled China's flat steel shipments to the Gulf. Consequently, China and India are rapidly absorbing SEA's diverted billet orders. SMM projects that blocked flat steel returning to China's domestic market, combined with surging overseas billet demand, will accelerate the narrowing of the domestic HRC-rebar spread.

[SMM Steel] India is considering a phased mandate for green steel in public procurement. The CII reports that a 26% low-carbon commitment could unlock 16 million tons of green steel supply by FY 2029/2030, provided the government offers cost-reimbursement mechanisms like price premiums or VAT exemptions.

[Tungsten Industry Long-Term Contract Information] SMM, March 10: It is reported that a tungsten company in Guangdong released the long-term contract prices for the first half of March. The unit price of black tungsten concentrate with a grade above 55% was 955,000 yuan/standard tonne (65%WO3 basis), up by 225,000 yuan/standard tonne (65%WO3 basis) from the second half of February. The unit price of scheelite concentrate with a grade above 55% was 954,000 yuan/standard tonne (65%WO3 basis), up by 225,000 yuan/standard tonne (65%WO3 basis) from the second half of February. The unit price of ammonium paratungstate was 1,410,000 yuan/mt, up by 340,000 yuan/mt from the second half of February. Note: The above prices all include 13% VAT.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has opened its first gold refining facility, marking a significant step in the country’s effort to capture greater value from its vast mineral wealth.

[VAT invoice data shows: National corporate sales revenue increased by 4.3% YoY in April] The State Taxation Administration uses VAT invoice data calculated at current prices to monitor national corporate sales revenue on a daily basis, reflecting the macroeconomic operation trend. The latest data shows that in April, the growth rate of national corporate sales revenue accelerated, increasing by 4.3% YoY, continuing the steady growth trend since Q4 last year. This reflects the continuous release of the effects of a package of existing and incremental policies since the end of September last year, boosting the economic rebound.

According to an announcement issued by the Ministry of Finance and the State Taxation Administration, starting from April 1, 2026, the VAT export tax rebates for products such as ceramics and PV will be fully abolished (the original rebate rates were mostly 9%–13%).

According to SMM, after the cancellation of local tax rebates and incentive subsidies in accordance with the detailed rules of the Regulation on the Examination of Fair Competition in Guangdong, the actual VAT rate for enterprises utilizing waste materials is about 10.2%. In July and August, some copper scrap rod factories purchased copper scrap raw materials based on this tax rate, but due to excessively low offers, there were almost no transactions in the market. Since September, SMM has revised its quotations for bright copper in Guangdong, adjusting the tax rate from 9% to 5.8%.

The operating rates of copper rod plants using copper scrap were 48.96% between June 26 and June 30, a drop of 0.61 percentage point from a week earlier, according to SMM survey of 15 plants with a capacity of 1.48 million mt/year). The supply of copper scrap last week was no longer the main factor restricting the production of copper rod produced with copper scrap.