MIIT released the economic performance of the communications industry for the first four months of 2026. In the first four months, cumulative telecom business revenue reached 594.1 billion yuan, down 1.7% YoY. Total telecom business volume, calculated at constant prices of the previous year, grew 8% YoY. As of month-end April, the total number of mobile phone users of the three basic telecom enterprises and China Broadnet reached 1.838 billion, a net increase of 10.92 million from year-end. Among them, 5G mobile phone users reached 1.262 billion, a net increase of 57.58 million from year-end, accounting for 68.7% of total mobile phone users. As of month-end April, the total number of 5G base stations reached 5.009 million, a net increase of 171,000 from year-end, accounting for 38.7% of total mobile base stations, up 0.5 percentage points from Q1.

SMM Analysis: According to data from the General Administration of Customs, China's copper foil (HS codes: 74101100, 74102190) exports in April 2026 were 7,359.85 mt, up 98.96% YoY and up 10.45% MoM...

[SMM Analysis] This article introduces knowledge related to energy storage in a straightforward manner by addressing three questions: What is energy storage? Why do we need energy storage? How is energy storage implemented? At its core, energy storage is a technological system designed to address the temporal and spatial mismatches in electricity supply and demand, enabling the transfer of energy across time through forms such as chemical energy (e.g., batteries) and potential energy (e.g., pumped hydro storage). Its core architecture comprises four major modules: energy storage battery cells serve as the energy carriers, with the LFP route dominating the market; PCS converters facilitate AC-DC conversion; the BMS system monitors the safety of tens of thousands of battery cells in real time; and the EMS system optimizes charging and discharging strategies based on electricity price signals. The primary demand for energy storage covers the power generation and grid side, as well as the demand side. Current technological iterations focus on large-capacity battery cells, such as the 587Ah cell from CATL and the 684Ah cell used in combination by Sungrow.