According to data from the Passenger Car Association, China's passenger vehicle retail market showed some changes in January this year. Total retail sales reached 1.544 million units, down 13.9% YoY. By segment, passenger NEV retail sales were 596,000 units, also declining, with a drop of 20%. However, in terms of exports, passenger NEVs demonstrated strong growth momentum. Exports in January reached 286,000 units, up 103.6% YoY, accounting for 49.6% of total passenger vehicle exports.

[SMM Cast Aluminum Alloy Morning Comment: Overnight Futures Slightly Lower, Spot Prices Hold Steady Amid Wait-and-See Attitude] On Wednesday, the A00 aluminum price edged down by 30 yuan/mt to 23,260 yuan/mt compared with the previous trading day, while the SMM ADC12 price remained stable at 23,650 yuan/mt. As the Chinese New Year approaches, upstream and downstream enterprises in the secondary aluminum industry chain have entered a concentrated holiday period, leading to a noticeable decline in market liquidity. Actual transactions continue to be sluggish, with spot quotations largely making minor adjustments around the futures market.

[French January new car sales fell 6.55%] The latest data released by the French Automotive Industry Association (PFA) shows that new car sales in France in January this year decreased by 6.55% YoY, to 107,157 units.

[Cross-border E-commerce Platform Launches Car Sales Business: Chinese EVs Go on Sale in the Middle East] Alibaba's cross-border e-commerce platform, AliExpress, has launched a car sales business, taking the lead in launching sales in the Middle East during the overseas 618 shopping festival. The AliExpress store page shows that the vehicles currently listed are mainly Chinese new energy vehicles, including popular car models such as BYD Yuan, Geely Xingyuan, Xiaomi SU7, Li Auto L7, XPeng G9, etc. Many of them have joined AliExpress's 10 billion yuan subsidy program for brands going global. It is reported that this is the first platform among the "Four Little Dragons Going Global" to sell cars. "Selling cars" is not a whim. In fact, auto parts have always been a strong category for AliExpress, maintaining rapid growth and accumulating a vast global user base of car owners, providing a natural user foundation for "exporting complete vehicles." On the other hand, China's automobile exports are growing rapidly, with continuous breakthroughs in technological fields such as new energy and intelligent connected vehicles.

[SMM Morning Comment on Cast Aluminum Alloy: Inventory Buildup Continues, Weak Demand Limits Upside Potential for ADC12 Spot Prices] Yesterday, the SMM A00 aluminum price rose by 240 yuan/mt from the previous trading day to 20,400 yuan/mt, while the domestic SMM ADC12 price remained stable within the range of 19,800-20,000 yuan/mt. Yesterday, the secondary aluminum alloy market generally maintained stable quotes or increased by 100 yuan/mt. Currently in the off-season, market transactions were average, and weak demand continued to suppress the upside room for price increases, while the cost side provided some support. In the short term, the ADC12 spot price is expected to fluctuate rangebound, and the inverted price gap with A00 aluminum will persist.

Toyota's global car sales reached 876,900 units in April, up 10% YoY, marking growth for four consecutive months and setting a new record for the same period in history, driven by a surge in car purchase demand in the US. In China, sales increased by 20.8% to 142,800 units.

【Spain: New Car Sales Up 7.1% YoY in April】According to data from the Spanish Automobile and Truck Manufacturers Association (ANFAC), new car sales in Spain increased by 7.1% year-over-year in April, reaching 98,522 units, marking the eighth consecutive month of growth. This is particularly noteworthy as Spain's new car sales in April 2024 had already grown by 23.1% year-over-year. In the first four months of this year, Spain's new car sales increased by 12.2% year-over-year, reaching 377,889 units. Spain is the only one among the top five European car markets to achieve positive growth, although it is still 13% lower than the pre-COVID-19 level in 2019.

【Chongqing: New Energy Passenger Car Sales Surge by 46.2% Year-over-Year in April】According to the Chongqing Automobile Trade Association, the Chongqing car market continued its warming trend in April, with 38,800 passenger cars sold, a year-over-year increase of 28.8%. Sales of new energy passenger cars reached 22,700 units, a year-over-year surge of 46.2%, with a market penetration rate of 58.7%, 7 percentage points above the national average. The data shows that new energy passenger cars in Chongqing have performed remarkably well. The cumulative sales volume from January to April reached 78,100 units, a year-over-year increase of 35.2%. The cumulative market penetration rate also rose to 51.9%. This indicates that the development of new energy vehicles in Chongqing has shifted from the initial policy-driven stage to a rapid popularization stage driven by market forces.

SMM News on May 29: In the morning of May 29, the automobile and auto parts sectors surged rapidly at the opening bell. The automobile sector index briefly rose by over 2.6% during the session, while the auto parts sector gained more than 2.3%. Among individual stocks, Dongfeng Motor's share price hit the daily limit, with multiple stocks such as King Long United Automotive Industry and Dongfeng Motor New Energy Technology following suit. The auto parts sector witnessed a wave of stocks hitting the daily limit, with over nine stocks, including Chaojie Technology, Yunnan Inner Power, Tongda Electrical, Zhengyu Industry, Hexing Co., Ltd., and Xingmin Intelligent Transportation, sealing the daily limit during the session. On the news front, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released its 2025 regulatory development work plan this morning. Projects to be submitted to the ministerial meeting for review this year include the Interim Measures for the Comprehensive Utilisation Management of Scrap Power Batteries from New Energy Vehicles and the Interim Measures for the Total Volume Control and Management of Rare Earth Mining and Smelting and Separation. Projects to be urgently researched and drafted include the Management Measures for the Recycling and Comprehensive Utilisation of Lithium-ion Batteries from E-bikes and the Implementation Rules for the Approval of Domestic Units Leasing Overseas Satellite Resources. Notably, the price war in the new energy vehicle sector has reignited recently. Last Friday, BYD launched a limited-time "fixed-price" sales promotion, mainly targeting users replacing their old vehicles, and increased the replacement subsidy while reducing prices. It is understood that this promotion involves a total of 22 intelligent driving models from the Wangchao and Ocean networks, with a maximum subsidy of up to 53,000 yuan. The promotion period runs from May 23 to June 30. The Ocean network's intelligent driving models start at 55,800 yuan, and the Haishi 07EV 550 Intelligent Navigation Edition's official guidance price of 189,800 yuan has been directly reduced to 149,800 yuan under the "fixed-price" scheme. Following BYD's move to initiate price cuts, multiple automotive brands, including Geely Galaxy, Leap Motor, and Shanghai GM Buick, have also gradually followed suit with price reductions, offering maximum replacement subsidies ranging from 20,000 to 25,000 yuan. Cui Dongshu, Secretary General of the China Passenger Car Association, stated that BYD's recent price cuts on 22 models would have a certain impact on current car market prices. He also mentioned that compared to 41 models in April last year and 19 models in April 2023, the number of models with price reductions in April this year has significantly decreased, reflecting a notable cooling of the "price-cutting trend." However, as automakers strive to achieve their annual sales targets, competition in the car market will intensify further in the second half of the year. He Xiaopeng, Chairman of XPeng Motors, mentioned on the evening of May 28 that the current "price war" is not yet the most intense, and it may become even fiercer in one of the next five years. Regarding XPeng Motors' future, He Xiaopeng stated that XPeng Motors should first not "compete on price" but rather "compete on technology"; second, it should expand globally beyond China; and third, it should transform new quality productive forces towards embodied intelligence. In addition, recently, trade-in policies across various regions in China have been continuously strengthened. Over the past few trading days, several provinces and cities, including Shanghai, Henan, Fujian, and Harbin, have successively issued car purchase incentive policies. In Shanghai, on May 21, the General Office of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government issued the "Shanghai Special Action Plan to Boost Consumption." It mentioned intensifying and expanding the implementation of trade-in for consumer goods. To promote auto consumption, the plan aims to implement the national vehicle scrappage and renewal subsidy policy and Shanghai's vehicle replacement and renewal subsidy policy. It also seeks to implement the national home appliance trade-in subsidy policy, introduce new subsidies for digital products such as mobile phones, tablets, and smartwatches (or smart bands), and further support green home appliances, home furnishings, and home decoration consumption. The General Office of the Henan Provincial Government also recently issued the "Henan Province Special Action Plan to Boost Consumption," which proposed intensifying efforts to promote trade-in. It supports vehicle scrappage and replacement, offering a maximum subsidy of 20,000 yuan for scrapping eligible old passenger cars and purchasing passenger NEVs, and a maximum subsidy of 15,000 yuan for purchasing fuel-powered passenger cars. For transferring old cars and purchasing passenger NEVs, the maximum subsidy is 15,000 yuan, and for fuel-powered passenger cars, it is 13,000 yuan. By 2025, the province aims to complete the scrappage and replacement of approximately 500,000 vehicles and the trade-in of over 8 million home appliances. In Harbin, according to the Harbin Bureau of Commerce, starting from May 28, Harbin will launch the "2025 Harbin Summer Charm Ice City Car Purchase Promotion" campaign. During the event, 48 million yuan in car purchase subsidies will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis until the funds are exhausted. The subsidies are targeted at individual consumers, with no regional restrictions. Anyone purchasing a new household passenger car (including NEVs) with "China VI" standards and seven seats or fewer from participating merchants can enjoy government subsidy policies in three tiers. For vehicles priced at 150,000 yuan or below (inclusive), a subsidy of 3,000 yuan per car will be provided; for vehicles priced above 150,000 yuan up to 300,000 yuan (inclusive), a subsidy of 4,000 yuan per car will be provided; and for vehicles priced above 300,000 yuan, a subsidy of 5,000 yuan per car will be provided. On May 28, the General Office of the Fujian Provincial Government issued the "Fujian Province Special Action Plan to Boost Consumption," which proposed supporting auto consumption. It aims to promote activities such as car modification, rental, racing, exhibitions, RV camping, and traditional classic car consumption in the automotive aftermarket. It encourages local governments to cultivate and expand used car business entities, promote "reverse invoicing" for used car sales, and accelerate the transition from brokerage to dealership models in the used car market. It also supports local governments in conducting auto consumption promotion activities, stacking car purchase incentive policies for additional support. By the end of 2025, China aims to have built over 80,000 public charging piles in total, achieving full coverage of public charging facilities in every township. The vehicle trade-in subsidy policy has also significantly boosted the automotive market. The China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) has stated that the effects of the "program of large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-ins" have continued to emerge this year. From January to April this year, various regions and relevant departments have fully utilized the ultra-long-term special treasury bond funds to promote the continued effectiveness of the policy to expand and strengthen the "program of large-scale equipment upgrades and consumer goods trade-ins". The policy to expand and strengthen the trade-in of consumer goods has yielded remarkable results, with diverse consumption scenarios continuously innovating, driving improved performance in the industries and supply chains of related products. Driven by the vehicle trade-in and replacement subsidy policy, 10.12 million vehicles were produced from January to April 2025, up 11% YoY.

[Fujian: Supporting Local Auto Consumption Promotion Activities with Overlapping Car Purchase Incentives] The General Office of Fujian Provincial People's Government issued the "Implementation Plan for Fujian Province's Consumption Stimulation Special Action," which proposes measures to support auto consumption. It encourages localities to develop aftermarket consumption such as auto modification, leasing, competitions, exhibitions, RV camping, and classic cars. Local governments are urged to cultivate and expand used car dealerships, promote "reverse invoicing" for used car sales, and accelerate the transition from brokerage to dealership models. Support will be provided for local auto consumption promotion activities with overlapping car purchase incentives. By the end of 2025, the province aims to have cumulatively built over 80,000 public charging piles, achieving "full township coverage" of public charging infrastructure. (Cailian Press) [XPeng Motors' He Xiaopeng: "Price Wars" Will Intensify in One Year During the Next Five Years] He Xiaopeng, Chairman of XPeng Motors, stated that the current "price war" is not yet at its most intense, predicting it may escalate further in one year during the next five years. "XPeng's priorities are: first, not to 'compete on price' but to 'compete on technology'; second, to expand globally beyond China; third, to transform new quality productive forces toward embodied intelligence." (Cailian Press) [MIIT Releases 2025 Regulatory Formulation Work Plan] The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) released its 2025 regulatory formulation work plan. Key items include submitting the "Interim Measures for the Comprehensive Utilization of Retired Power Batteries from NEVs" and the "Interim Measures for Total Control of Rare Earth Mining and Smelting/Separation" for ministerial review within the year. Drafting projects under urgent development include the "Management Measures for Recycling and Comprehensive Utilization of Lithium-ion Batteries for E-bikes" and the "Implementation Rules for Domestic Entities Leasing Foreign Satellite Resources." (Cailian Press) [Geely Group's Battery Subsidiary Jiyao Tongxing Passes New National Standard Testing for All Brick Battery Cell Products] Cailian Press reporters learned that all brick battery cell products from Jiyao Tongxing, a battery subsidiary of Geely Group, have obtained certification under GB38031-2025 "Safety Requirements for Power Batteries Used in Electric Vehicles" (hereinafter referred to as the "New National Standard"). Beyond meeting this standard, the brick cells also passed a more stringent military-grade safety protocol established by Jiyao Tongxing—remaining smoke-free, flame-free, and explosion-free after being simultaneously pierced by eight 0.005mm steel needles and left static for one hour. Industry note: The power battery "New National Standard" was promulgated by MIIT on March 28, 2025, and will take effect on July 1, 2026. It is regarded as the most stringent power battery safety standard to date, aiming to establish a comprehensive safety framework centered on "no fire, no explosion." [Canmax: Solid-State Battery Project Progresses Smoothly, Some Customers Have Achieved Sales After Evaluation] Canmax stated on an interactive platform that the company has developed new cathode materials, including high-voltage lithium cobalt oxide (LCO), high-nickel ternary cathode, lithium-rich manganese-based, and spinel nickel-manganese materials, centered around the core requirements of "high specific energy, high safety, high C-rate, long cycle life, and low cost" for battery cell material systems. These products are suitable for applications in solid-state and semi-solid-state lithium batteries. The lithium-rich manganese-based and other cathode materials developed by the company have completed R&D trials and been sent to multiple solid-state battery customers for evaluation, demonstrating high specific capacity and good stability within customer systems. Among them, some customers have achieved sales after evaluation. (Cailian Press) [New-Type Fuel Cell Prototype Device Validated with Triple Energy Density] Institutions including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US proposed a potentially breakthrough new technology solution and experimentally validated a new battery prototype device, which can achieve an energy density per unit weight more than three times that of the lithium-ion batteries currently used in electric vehicles (EVs). This achievement is expected to advance the electrification of transportation. Relevant research findings were published in the *Joule* journal on the 27th. (Cailian Press) Related Readings: [SMM Analysis] Domestic Lithium Carbonate Imports in April 2025 Released Battery Material Import and Export Data for April Released: Both Spodumene and Lithium Carbonate Imports Increased, with the Latter's Exports Surging! [SMM Special Report] Cobalt Product Quotations Collectively Decline: Refined Cobalt Falls by 6,200 Yuan, Smelters' Willingness to Sell Cobalt Intermediate Products Increases [Weekly Observation] Spot Price of Refined Cobalt Falls [SMM Weekly Review of Refined Cobalt Market] [SMM Weekly Review] Lithium Carbonate Prices Continue to Decline, Short-Term Market Remains Under Pressure [SMM Analysis] Can Titanium-Doped Iron Phosphate Be the Perfect Upgrade for the High-End Market? 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