[SMM Analysis: Glimmer of Hope amid Weak Supply and Demand: Review of China's Aluminum Billets Market in H1 2026 and Outlook for H2] In H1 2026, China’s aluminum billets market, squeezed by wild swings in aluminum prices and a slow recovery in end-use demand, underwent a turbulent journey from deep pressure to staged repair...

This week (July 4–10, 2026), the secondary aluminum market outside China remained in the doldrums, with the price centers of aluminum scrap and ADC12 declining further. As the impact of supply disruptions in the Middle East gradually faded, market trading logic returned to supply-demand fundamentals, while downstream procurement demand remained sluggish, pushing aluminum scrap and secondary aluminum alloy prices outside China under pressure. The overall trading atmosphere was relatively sluggish.

[SMM Analysis: 2026 H1 PV Resin Market Review and Outlook – Prices Retreat After Geopolitical Spike, H2 Faces Supply-Demand Tug-of-War] In H1 2026, PV-grade EVA resin prices completed a full cycle of “low-level consolidation—pulse spike—consolidation at highs—accelerated decline—hitting bottom and stabilising,” with a fluctuation range exceeding 50%. POE resin, based on different supply-demand fundamentals and localisation progress, showed significant divergence from EVA in fluctuation magnitude and recovery pace.

The overseas secondary aluminum market shifted from supply-driven gains to demand-led corrections in H1 as geopolitical risks eased and downstream demand remained weak. At the same time, the UAE, the EU and the US introduced measures to strengthen domestic scrap resource management, reinforcing aluminum scrap's strategic role in global supply chains. In H2, SMM expects demand recovery to be the key driver of prices, while policy will continue to shape trade flows and premium scrap availability.

Senior Technology expects net profit attributable to shareholders of RMB 736 million-900 million in the first half of 2026, compared with a loss a year earlier. The company said strong downstream demand for lithium-ion battery separators supported steady shipment growth, while improving industry supply-demand fundamentals helped separator prices stabilize and recover from last year's lows. Combined with effective cost controls, higher margins drove a significant improvement in profitability.

[SMM EMM Weekly Review: Off-Season Demand Drags, EMM Remains in Subdued Range-Bound Move] This week, China’s EMM market consolidated on a subdued note overall. Spot prices pulled back slightly, while the tug-of-war between longs and shorts in futures was intense, resulting in a pattern of consolidation on a subdued note. The cost side still provided rigid support, with prices of core raw materials such as sulphuric acid and manganese ore staying firm...

The high-purity manganese sulfate market staged a segmented performance in the first half of 2026, rallying in Q1 before slipping into corrective volatility in Q2. Q1 prices were buoyed by cost advantages and export policies, while Q2 came under pressure amid slack seasonal demand and expanded supply. Nevertheless, prices avoided a steep decline thanks to persistently high upstream raw material prices and the cushion of long-term orders, only fluctuating within a narrow band.

The spot price of domestic electrolytic manganese showed a clear staged trend in the first half of 2026: it first surged upward, retreated amid intensified long-short game, and then rebounded and stabilized supported by coordinated production cuts. The price center remained elevated throughout the period, underpinned mainly by high sulfuric acid costs and joint industry regulation.

[SMM Cast Aluminum Alloy Morning Comment: Off-Season Demand Hard to Improve, Aluminum Alloy Prices Mainly Move Sideways] The ADC12 market sees coexistence of price adjustments, following rises, and a wait-and-see attitude. The price rise lacks effective support from the demand side, and the market continues to consolidate in the short term.

[SMM Silicon PV Morning Brief] Silicon metal: Yesterday, SMM east China oxygen-blown #553 silicon was around 9,000 yuan/mt, and #441 silicon was around 9,200 yuan/mt, stable from the previous day. The most-traded contract on the futures market consolidated in a stalemate below 8,400 yuan/mt. Recently, driven by supply-demand fundamentals, prices have encountered resistance, and are in a stalemate, consolidating on a subdued note. Wafers: Market prices for 18X wafers are 0.85-0.88 yuan/piece, 210RN wafers at 0.96-0.98 yuan/piece, and 210N wafers at 1.16-1.18 yuan/piece. Recently, cell enterprises have been calling for lower wafer prices, putting near-term wafer prices under pressure.