On February 28, Israeli Air Force fighter jets crossed thousands of kilometers of airspace to conduct a daylight precision strike on the center of Tehran, Iran's capital, drawing significant market attention. How will this conflict impact zinc concentrates? .

According to SMM, as the Chinese New Year holiday approaches, multiple lead-zinc mines in China will enter the conventional production suspension period for the holiday, lasting from one to two weeks. Additionally, some smelters in north China have started their winter break early, with shutdowns lasting two to three months. The supply of lead concentrates in China declined as expected. In the imported ore market, lead concentrate TCs for February remained at -150 to -160 US dollars per dmt. Due to the Chinese New Year holiday, combined with the completion of winter stockpiling by smelters, maintenance shutdowns, and a pause in quotations, market trading activity weakened. This week, approaching the holiday, smelters generally delayed their raw material procurement needs until after the holiday. Precious metal prices consolidated sideways, and the payable indicator for silver contained in lead concentrates showed no significant changes or negotiations. Some smelters adopted a wait-and-see stance temporarily to avoid risks from declining silver processing margins and lower operational expectations. The situation seen in 2026, where smelters "scrambled" for silver-bearing raw materials at the cost of lower TCs, has eased as the overheated precious metals market cooled down. In the short term, TCs for lead concentrates with medium to low silver content remain generally stable.

Historically, domestic zinc concentrate production typically declines continuously from December to February each year. There are two main reasons: first, some mines undergo routine shutdowns in winter due to weather conditions; second, the Chinese New Year holiday falls early in the year, during which many mines suspend operations or conduct maintenance. As this year's Chinese New Year holiday approaches, how will these factors specifically affect domestic zinc concentrate supply？

[Lead Smelter Updates] Recently, Yunnan Chihong Zn & Ge Co., Ltd. (600497) stated on an interactive platform that the company primarily focuses on the extraction, enrichment, and efficient recovery technologies of germanium resources associated with lead-zinc mines. By deepening strategic collaboration with its joint venture Chalco Qianxing (Chengdu) Technology Co., Ltd., it continues to provide stable, high-quality germanium raw material supplies. The processing of the mining license and project design optimization for the Jinxin Molybdenum Mine are progressing in an orderly manner. The Huize Mining Mine Plant has not implemented a deep expansion project; instead, it is advancing the optimization of its deep safety system, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2026.

[Zinc concentrate production situation] According to SMM, as the Chinese New Year holiday approaches, a zinc mine in Southwest China suspended production in early February and is expected to resume production in early March, which is anticipated to result in a reduction of about 1,000 mt in metal content of zinc concentrates.

SMM Analysis：As of June 6, 2025, the SMM weekly domestic zinc concentrate TC rose to 3,600 yuan/mt (metal content), and the SMM imported zinc ore index increased by $50.35/dmt, with overall processing fees continuing to rise compared to May. Behind the sustained high production of smelters, what factors are driving the increase in zinc concentrate TCs in June? Let's analyze this from the supply side.....

In recent years, zinc prices have fluctuated largely around the supply-demand imbalance between mining and smelting. With a significant increase in zinc concentrate supply expected for this year, prices may face downward pressure as we expected at the beginning of this year. This is the second report of two, which reviews Q1 production data from major overseas zinc mines from the Asia, Oceania and the Americas, and provides updated forecasts for full-year output.

In recent years, zinc prices have fluctuated largely around the supply-demand imbalance between mining and smelting. With a significant increase in zinc concentrate supply expected for this year, prices may face downward pressure as we expected at the beginning of this year. This is the first report of two, which reviews Q1 production data from major overseas zinc mines from the EMEA region, which covers Europe, Middle East and Africa.

【SMM Flash News】 According to SMM, there have been maintenance works at zinc mines in south-west China recently, lasting a total of 10 days. The impact on zinc concentrate exceeded 1,000 mt (metal content), and the mines are expected to resume operations in early June.

[SMM Flash News] According to SMM, there has been maintenance at zinc mines in south-west China recently, lasting a total of 10 days. The impact on zinc concentrates exceeds 1,000 mt (metal content), and it is expected to resume operations in early June.