Freeport-McMoRan reported on Thursday that Q2 copper production declined, while Q2 profit exceeded expectations, as higher copper prices offset the impact of lower output at its Grasberg mine in Indonesia.Copper's average realized price for the quarter was $6.17 per pound, compared with $4.54 a year earlier.Freeport-McMoRan, headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, suspended operations at its Grasberg mine in Indonesia after approximately 800,000 metric tons of wet material flooded the site on September 8.

According to CAAM statistics, in June 2026, sales of Chinese-brand passenger vehicles reached 1.812 million units, up 7.3% MoM and up 6.2% YoY, accounting for 75.5% of total passenger vehicle sales, with the market share up 8.2 percentage points YoY.

[SMM Silicone Weekly Review: Transaction Prices of Silicone Products Hit New Stage Lows Again, While Tug-of-War Between Upstream and Downstream Persists] DMC prices continued to weaken significantly this week, with the transaction range falling to 11,300-11,500 yuan/mt, down 850 yuan/mt WoW. Demand side, with no improvement in end-use demand, market transaction prices kept declining, making mid- and downstream clients more cautious in purchasing. Currently, although raw material inventories at some clients have fallen to low levels, they remain on the sidelines, showing little willingness for concentrated stockpiling, and maintain small, rigid-demand purchases while pushing for lower prices, waiting for market prices to fall further to their psychological expectations before buying the dip and stockpiling.

On 22 July, Sigma Lithium announced that it was negotiating a Conduct Adjustment Agreement, or TAC, with the government of Minas Gerais, Brazil, in response to a regulatory notice issued by the regional environmental authority, SUPRAM Jequitinhonha. The related fines total approximately US$540,000 and partly concern environmental matters dating from 2013 to 2022. Sigma has denied allegations including inaccurate regulatory disclosures, commercial sales before the relevant authorisation period, and adverse impacts on residences outside the licensed area. However, the company has agreed to use the TAC process to define corrective measures and expects to invest approximately US$1 million to restore certain activities that have been partially and temporarily suspended by inspectors. Sigma also stated that second-quarter production exceeded its previous target. From a financial perspective, the direct impact appears limited. The US$540,000 fine and approximately US$1 million of expected remediation expenditure are not material relative to the 270,000-tonne-per-year nameplate capacity of Phase 1 at the Grota do Cirilo operation. The more important issue is therefore not whether Sigma can absorb the cost, but which operational activities have been suspended and whether the remediation process could affect mining continuity or future expansion. The company has not specified the exact scope of the suspended activities. For a mining operation, this matters more than whether the concentrator itself remains operational. If the restrictions apply only to limited environmental procedures or auxiliary works, the near-term production impact may remain modest. However, if they affect waste-rock disposal, mining activities or site access roads, upstream ore supply could gradually come under pressure as existing stockpiles are consumed, even if the concentrator is not directly shut down. Sigma’s emphasis on second-quarter production exceeding target demonstrates that the operation had been performing well, but it does not fully address the potential effect of the regulatory restrictions on third-quarter and subsequent production. The latest notice should also not be viewed as an isolated event. In January 2026, Brazil’s labour authorities ordered Sigma to stop using three waste-rock piles at Grota do Cirilo on the grounds that they could pose a serious and immediate risk to employees and nearby communities. Brazil’s National Mining Agency later concluded that it had not identified an imminent geotechnical risk, while still noting deficiencies in drainage and areas of localised erosion that required remediation. In May, labour inspectors reportedly issued another fine after Sigma continued depositing material at one of the restricted waste-rock piles. Although different regulators have taken different views on the severity of the risk, the repeated interventions point to a broader issue: waste management and environmental compliance are becoming persistent operational constraints at Grota do Cirilo. From a supply perspective, the available information does not yet justify a material reduction in Phase 1 output assumptions. A TAC is a commonly used mechanism in Brazil through which companies and regulators agree on corrective measures and implementation schedules. The relatively limited remediation expenditure disclosed by Sigma also suggests that the company believes the matter can be resolved without a prolonged shutdown. Under the base case, the probability of a long-term, comprehensive restriction on Phase 1 production still appears low. Nevertheless, the project’s operational risk weighting should be increased, and downside scenarios should be retained in annual production forecasts. The greater concern lies with Phase 2. Sigma plans to increase total Grota do Cirilo capacity from 270,000 tonnes to 520,000 tonnes per year. This expansion would involve not only additional processing capacity, but also higher mining intensity, greater waste-rock volumes and more complex land-use, environmental and community requirements. If the existing waste-management and environmental issues remain unresolved, the Phase 2 permitting, construction and commissioning schedule could face additional constraints. When mining projects encounter regulatory challenges, the market often focuses first on the size of the fine. In practice, the more important variable for valuation and supply forecasting is usually time. A few million dollars of remediation expenditure may be immaterial, but a delay of six to twelve months can have a much larger effect on project net present value and the timing of future supply. Sigma has disclosed its estimated remediation cost, but has not quantified how long the suspended activities may remain restricted or whether the TAC could impose additional conditions on Phase 2. A more appropriate modelling response would therefore be to widen the downside range for Phase 1 production, while reducing the probability that Phase 2 starts and ramps up according to the company’s existing timetable. The broader industry implication is also important. Sigma is one of Brazil’s earliest large-scale lithium concentrate producers and exporters, and a flagship project within the country’s “Lithium Valley” strategy. Its experience demonstrates that Brazil’s hard-rock lithium sector cannot be assessed solely on the basis of resource size, concentrator capacity and corporate expansion targets. Waste-rock management, community relations, regulatory coordination and permitting execution will also determine how much supply projects can deliver consistently to the market. Overall, the latest development does not yet amount to a major near-term supply disruption. Phase 1 production may continue, but environmental and regulatory issues have evolved from a one-off disturbance into an operational variable that requires ongoing monitoring. The factor that should be marked down is not the existing 270,000-tonne nameplate capacity itself, but confidence in its stable operation and in the timing of Phase 2. The key issues to monitor are the specific corrective measures included in the TAC, the scope and duration of the suspended activities, and whether the Phase 2 expansion requires amendments to its environmental approvals or construction schedule. Until these points are clarified, above-target second-quarter production confirms that the operation has the technical ability to produce, but it does not yet demonstrate that future supply will be delivered in line with the company’s stated plan. SMM Lesley Yang yangle@smm.cn

[SMM Analysis: Expert Opinions Clash – Semi-Solid-State Battery Mass Production Year Begins, All-Solid-State Still Building Momentum] 2026 is widely regarded by the industry as the "mass production year" for semi-solid-state batteries. However, expert opinions on the industrial positioning and time pace of semi-solid-state and all-solid-state batteries are markedly divided. SVOLT Energy Technology Chairman Yang Hongxin and Huang Xuejie from the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, among others, lean toward the view that "semi-solid-state will be the long-term mainstream," while CATL Chairman Zeng Yuqun and Gotion High-tech Chief Scientist Zhu Xingbao remain cautiously optimistic about all-solid-state batteries from the perspectives of technological maturity and cost.

At the recently held SMM GBRC lithium battery recycling industry conference, participating enterprises across the industry chain engaged in thorough exchanges, summarizing the common issues confronting the sector's current development. Feedback from the conference indicates that China's lithium battery recycling industry remains in a phase of development and refinement, with overall standardization yet to be enhanced.

According to the latest data from the General Administration of Customs, in June 2026, China imported 210,900 mt in physical content of copper scrap and shredded copper scrap, up 10.43% MoM and up 15.11% YoY. In January-June 2026, cumulative imports reached 1.2415 million mt in physical content, up 8.39% YoY.

[Destocking Pattern Hard to Reverse in Short Term, Aluminum Prices Consolidate and Adjust in Short Term] Overall, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East remain volatile, market concerns over interest rate hikes persist, and supply continues to recover, but the destocking pattern is hard to reverse in the short term. Under the tug-of-war between longs and shorts, aluminum prices are expected to consolidate and adjust in the near term. Going forward, close attention should be paid to the progress of production resumptions in the Middle East and the trends of geopolitical conflicts, LME aluminum ingot inventory changes, and China’s downstream processing orders and aluminum semis export data.

SMM July 20 news: Last Friday, LME lead opened at $1,869.5/mt and moved sideways during Asian trading hours. Entering the European session, it dipped initially before rebounding, touching a low of $1,863.5/mt, and later surged to a high of $1,890.5/mt near the close as bears reduced their positions, eventually settling at $1,887/mt, up 0.96%. Last Friday night, the most-traded SHFE lead 2609 contract opened at 15,875 yuan/mt, briefly hit a low of 15,855 yuan/mt in early trading, and then rebounded to a high of 15,980 yuan/mt as bears cut their positions, before finally closing at 15,945 yuan/mt, up 0.44%. Due to delivery factors and downstream purchases, visible lead ingot inventory rose then fell last week. After the bearish news of inventory buildup outside China was fully digested, the Chinese market's attention shifted to the production of secondary lead enterprises and downstream purchasing trends. If lead ingot inventory continues to destock this week, lead prices are expected to return to and consolidate above the 16,000-yuan-per-mt level.

June Price Review: The monthly average price of non-oriented silicon steel exhibited a bottoming-out decline in June. On the supply-demand front, the market shifted from a slight balance to a narrow undersupply, with fundamentals continuing to improve marginally. The oversupply that previously weighed on the market gradually eased, providing price support. Spot prices performed stronger than expected, edging down only slightly. As a transitional month shifting from off-season to peak season, the supply-demand pattern improved in June. Fundamental Analysis: China's production schedule for non-oriented silicon steel continued to decline in July. Comparing with the same period in previous years, the scheduled production in July 2026 was lower than that of July 2025. Analyzing by grade, the proportion of NEV grades in the July production schedule rebounded to 15%, high grades accounted for 19%, while the proportion of low and mid-end grades pulled back to 66%. Steel mills continued to adjust their product mix, with the scheduled production of conventional low and mid-end grades shrinking accordingly. While total scheduled production continued to contract, supply-side pressure persisted. Maintaining original production levels for NEV and high-grade resources while significantly reducing low and mid-end grades optimized the supply structure to some extent, supporting market resilience. Downstream demand for non-oriented silicon steel showed structural divergence in May. In the home appliance sector, total silicon steel consumption pulled back MoM, with air conditioners remaining the core demand driver. Demand from the automotive sector was strong, with silicon steel consumption climbing to a high level for the period in May. Specifically, passenger NEVs provided the largest support for automotive silicon steel demand. Overall, traditional demand from home appliances weakened marginally, while NEV demand continued to strengthen. The demand center shifted toward the automotive sector, generating structural benefits for high-grade and NEV-grade non-oriented silicon steel. July Price Outlook: Supply side, China's planned production schedule for non-oriented silicon steel continued to decrease in July 2026, with reductions primarily focused on low and mid-end grades. On one hand, the off-season impact became more pronounced, downstream demand was soft, and purchasing interest declined, curbing production activity. On the other hand, industry leaders like Baowu and Shougang kept base prices unchanged in July, prioritizing price stability, but bearish sentiment persisted, making prices more likely to fall than rise. Most producers were loss-making and cut production autonomously. Demand side, in the home appliance sector, enterprises slowed their production pace, with orders falling MoM. The 618 shopping festival provided no significant order stimulus. Affected by low demand, high inventory, and high costs, some enterprises cut their production schedules ahead of schedule, and the implementation of new energy efficiency standards for some appliance products led to model upgrades that restricted production. In the automotive sector, automakers generally maintained normal production paces, with some increasing production schedules this month to meet mid-year targets. However, the sales promotions of the 618 festival and policies yielded limited boosting effects, and sales pressure persisted. Breaking it down, NEVs remained the main sales driver this month, orders for internal combustion engine vehicles showed no significant improvement, and exports were mainly directed to markets such as Russia, South America, and Southeast Asia, with the industry's full-year export volume expected to reach 12 million units. Cost side, with steel mill profits continuing to shrink and expectations of normalized local environmental protection-driven production restrictions, hot metal production is expected to continue to pull back. But as the off-season impact expands, the average hot-rolled coil price in July is expected to decline further MoM from June, though the extent of the decline will narrow. In summary, SMM expects that prices for low and mid-end non-oriented silicon steel will drift lower overall in July 2026, with some room for price reductions.