On March 25, the groundbreaking ceremony for the “New-Type Silver Paste Product Intelligent Manufacturing Base Project” of Shanghai Silver Paste Technology Co., Ltd. was held. It is expected to reach full production in January 2030, when it will form an annual production capacity of 650 mt of PV silver paste, achieve annual output value of 5 billion yuan, and generate annual tax revenue of over 24 million yuan. The new base will introduce internationally advanced R&D equipment and experimental facilities to realize automation, intelligence, and lean management throughout the entire production process, while simultaneously enhancing technological R&D capabilities, production efficiency, and product consistency.

Key Points: Silver extends its breakout above the 50-day MA as bullish momentum builds toward the February high of $92.20. A 31% drop in COMEX inventories fuels concerns over a growing physical supply crunch. Registered silver stocks fall below 90M oz, raising liquidity fears as open interest exceeds available metal fourfold.

Silver prices held up well today, with the backwardation structure of the SHFE silver 2602-2604 contracts continuing to widen. Spot market supply remained tight domestically, and some traders mentioned difficulties in picking up goods from TD long position deliveries at the Gold Exchange. After state-owned smelters completed month-end inventory clearance, quoted spot supplies in the market decreased. Following rapid trades in the morning session where Shanghai silver ingot suppliers raised their premiums against TD to 800-1,000 yuan/kg, spot market premiums against TD generally rose above 1,000 yuan/kg. Some suppliers quoted premiums of 1,000 yuan/kg against the SHFE silver 2604 contract. In the Shenzhen market, purchase quotes for silver materials through jewelry channels with small transaction volumes increased to 1,500-1,800 yuan/kg, showing significant disparities in spot market quotes. Sellers in the silver spot market were reluctant to sell, with only small purchases from rigid industrial demand. Some silver powder and silver nitrate enterprises suspended order-taking and adopted a cautious wait-and-see approach due to the sharp rise in premiums. The tight spot supply and unusual price spread between futures contracts still pose a squeeze risk in the SHFE silver front-month futures contract. Downstream buyers were cautious about high prices, leading to thinner market transactions. Silver Prices Hold Up Well, Price Spread Between Futures Contracts Widens; Spot Market Supply Tight, Premiums Surge

【SMM Today's News Summary】 ►National Bureau of Statistics: In May, the manufacturing PMI was 49.5%, indicating a certain decline in the boom level of the manufacturing sector. ►Metals prices mostly fell, with coke and alumina prices decreasing by more than 3%, and Shanghai silver, Shanghai copper, and Shanghai tin experiencing the largest declines. ►Interpretation of the impact of the 24th Action Plan for Energy Conservation and Carbon Reduction on the copper smelting industry. ►SMM: Review and Prospect of the Global Energy Storage Market from 2023 to 2030. ►SMM: Expected sustained increase in neodymium-iron-boron production in 2024, with prospects for demand in automobiles, wind power, home appliances, and other rare earths.

Metals market: As of midday close, the base metals in the domestic market were generally lower. Shanghai lead and Shanghai zinc rose slightly, and the increase was within 0.5%. Shanghai copper, Shanghai aluminum, and Shanghai nickel all fell, and the decline was within 0.6% (inclusive).

SMM, April 20: Metal market: Overnight, base metals rose across the board, with Shanghai tin up 5.48% and Shanghai nickel up 3.85%. Shanghai copper rose 1.39%, the highest intraday rose to 80,170 yuan / ton, a new high since May 2006. Shanghai aluminum rose 0.47%, and Shanghai zinc rose 0.88%. Shanghai lead rose 1.22%. Alumina fell 1.19%. 》

The purchase of gold by central banks of many countries, the safe-haven demand brought about by geopolitical conflicts and the market's enthusiasm for going long are still continuing, and COMEX gold continued to set a new high on April 9.

As the conflict in the Middle East escalates again, the safe-haven properties of precious metals shine again! Gold prices continued to perform wildly in April, with Shanghai gold and COMEX gold hitting record highs on the 1st.

The Federal Reserve announced the results of its interest rate decision overnight. If the market expects to keep interest rates unchanged, policymakers still expect the United States to cut interest rates three times this year, and it is expected to reduce interest rates by 75 basis points by the end of 2024. This news caused the U.S. dollar index to fall sharply overnight, closing down 0.39%. In morning trading on the 21st, the U.S. dollar index continued to fall.

The U.S. dollar rebounded, causing basic metals to generally fall. Domestic basic metals fell, with Shanghai copper and nickel rising but alumina and other metals falling. LME metals were mostly green, with nickel falling in London. Lithium carbonate rose to a new high, while industrial silicon fell. The black series rose, with coking coal, coke, iron ore, and other metals rising. Shanghai gold rose but Shanghai silver fell, while COMEX gold and silver fell. The European liner freight main contract rose. There have been no major changes in the supply and demand pattern of domestic alumina before the holiday, but the operating rate has rebounded slightly. For lithium carbonate, the recovery progress on the supply side is slow, causing market concerns.