[Lead Spot Market Update] It was learned that recently lead prices trended weakly, and downstream lead-acid battery enterprises generally bought the dip, with purchases concentrated in the primary lead sector. Smelters' in-factory inventories in major primary lead producing areas, represented by Henan, declined significantly, and lead ingot dispatches faced queues. Today, spot lead quotation discounts narrowed substantially. The latest trader's EXW cargo pick-up quotation was at parity against the SHFE lead 2607 contract. Yesterday, the transaction price was at a premium of 0~25 yuan/mt against the SMM #1 lead average price, ex-works (i.e., a discount of 140~120 yuan/mt against the SHFE lead 2607 contract).

SMM June 12: In early trading, the SHFE aluminum 2606 contract fluctuated upward, with its overall price center higher than the previous trading day. Selling sentiment in the market increased today, but buying interest among downstream users was suppressed by the higher aluminum prices. However, destocking accelerated, and premium expectations narrowed, supporting firm quotes and transaction prices. Mainstream spot transaction prices were at a discount of 90–100 yuan/mt against the SHFE aluminum 07 contract. The selling sentiment index in east China was 2.96, up 0.07 from the previous day, and the buying sentiment index was 2.83, down 0.04. SHFE aluminum futures showed a rebound uptrend today. Despite the weekend stockpiling cycle, downstream processing enterprises in central China had ample earlier stockpiles, leading to low buying interest. Suppliers tended to sell heavily while the discount had not yet widened, causing a price collapse and decline. Overall market trading sentiment turned weaker compared with the previous two days. The actual transaction price range in central China was around a discount of 130–160 yuan/mt against the SHFE aluminum 07 contract. The selling sentiment index in central China was 2.91, up 0.01 from the previous day, while the buying sentiment index was 2.21, down 0.01. On the inventory front, aluminum ingot inventories in major consumption areas fell by 1.4 from the previous day, with all three regions showing destocking.

This week, lead concentrate TCs were generally flat. The weekly average TC for domestic Pb50 was 200 yuan/mt Pb, and for imported Pb60 it was -$145/dmt. During the week, TCs for standard ores held steady. Some enterprises that set prices at month-end or early in the month continued with previous prices. For silver-lead ores rich in copper and zinc, with non-payable metal content, transaction TCs were at a high level of around -2,900 yuan/mt Pb. For imported ores, smelters were willing to accept silver-lead ore TCs exceeding -$200/dmt, driven by payable metal credits and blending needs. Also, although silver prices fell to around 15,000 yuan/mt during the week, the decline was brief and did not form an absolute low. Combined with high silver recovery rates at lead smelters, the payable indicator for silver in lead concentrates has not yet been lowered.

[SMM Daily Commentary: Silver Price Corrective Rebound, Spot Silver Transactions at Parity Await Guidance] SMM June 12 - The US-Iran tensions have eased, and silver prices rebounded slightly. Affected by the "rush to buy amid continuous price rise and hold back amid price downturn" mentality, transactions in the spot market were concentrated at parity. Going forward, attention needs to be paid to downstream purchase willingness.

White Cliff Minerals has reported high-grade drilling results from the Danvers target at its Rae copper project in Nunavut, Canada. Highlight hole DAN26012 intersected 19.8 metres grading 6.64% copper from 152.4 metres depth, including 7.6 metres at 11.38% copper and 3 metres at 17.68% copper. The interval also contained 1.5 metres grading 21.1% copper, marking the strongest result reported at the project to date. The company said drilling has now confirmed copper mineralization over a strike length of approximately 2.6 km, while surface mineralization suggests the broader system may extend beyond 4 km. White Cliff plans to continue drilling across the remaining target area before August to further evaluate resource growth potential.

SMM June 12 news: During June 5-11, 2026, the weekly operating rate of secondary lead in four provinces tracked by SMM stood at 29.7%, up 1.31 percentage points WoW. Some smelters in Anhui cut production due to losses and tight raw material supply, while large smelters resumed production and ramped up, offsetting the reduction and lifting the regional operating rate by 2.39 percentage points. The sharp drop in lead prices drove down scrap battery prices and boosted circulation; after restocking raw materials, Henan smelters raised production, while enterprises in Jiangsu cut production due to losses. Next week, small smelters in Inner Mongolia plan to resume production, and the regional operating rate is expected to increase by 3.41 percentage points. Other enterprises will adjust production based on changes in raw materials and lead prices.

According to SMM statistics, as of June 12, aluminum ingot inventories were: Guangdong (334,500 mt), Wuxi (521,000 mt), and Gongyi (240,000 mt), totaling 1.0955 million mt across the three locations, down 14,000 mt from the previous period.

SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Overnight, LME copper opened at $13,424/mt, swung wildly in early trading and touched a low of $13,398/mt, then the price center fluctuated upward, and near the close it rose to a high of $13,612.5/mt before finally closing at $13,575/mt, up 0.94%. Trading volume reached 21,100 lots, and open interest stood at 265,000 lots, a decrease of 2,125 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bears reduced positions. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2607 contract opened at 103,280 yuan/mt, dipped to 103,010 yuan/mt right at the open, then fluctuated upward and touched a high of 103,850 yuan/mt near the close, finally settling at 103,540 yuan/mt, up 0.13%. Trading volume reached 30,100 lots, and open interest amounted to 152,400 lots, a decrease of 8 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bears reduced positions.

Zhonggong International announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Zhonggong International Jiangsu, has signed a commercial contract with Huatong Angola for the Huatong Angola aluminum production line Phase II project (covering sections 1 to 6). The project aims to expand a production line with an annual capacity of 120,000 mt of aluminum, and the services cover design, equipment procurement, and installation & commissioning. The total contract value is 1.717 billion yuan, and the construction period is set at 24 months.

[Tungsten Express] SMM June 12 News: The Kafang Branch of Yunnan Tin Co., Ltd. will sell two lots of ore through price negotiation on June 17, 2026. Lot 1: Scheelite concentrates with physical content of approximately 34 mt, grade of 50%, and tungsten metal of 17 mt (subject to final actual delivery quantity); sale time: 14:00, June 17, 2026. Lot 2: Coarse tin concentrate with dry weight of approximately 130 mt, tin grade of 2.3%, tungsten grade of 24%, total metal content of 34.19 mt (of which tin 2.99 mt, tungsten 31.2 mt, subject to final actual delivery quantity), and the pricing elements are tungsten trioxide and tin. Both lots are quoted at a tax-inclusive unit price per metal tonne (tax rate 13%). Price negotiation requires at least three qualified clients. The outcome will be subject to the Kafang Branch’s decision through a deliberation meeting.