The State Council Information Office held a press conference today (14th) to present China's foreign trade performance since the start of this year. It was introduced that in H1, China's foreign trade achieved double-digit growth and maintained a good momentum. With the rapid development of artificial intelligence, imports and exports of related products showed strong momentum. In H1, imports and exports of computing hardware such as electronic components and computer parts totaled 5.13 trillion yuan, up 56.6%. Smart products like AI glasses, AI translators, and mechanical exoskeletons have been quickly iterating, with various innovative products constantly emerging. According to customs statistics, in H1 of this year, China's total goods trade imports and exports reached 25.47 trillion yuan, up 16.9% YoY. Specifically, exports were 14.73 trillion yuan, up 13.4% YoY, maintaining growth for 11 consecutive quarters; imports were 10.74 trillion yuan, up 22.1% YoY, outpacing exports by 8.7 percentage points. In June, imports and exports totaled 4.78 trillion yuan, up 24.2% YoY, maintaining growth for 17 consecutive months. Export side, the product structure further improved. In H1, China's exports of mechanical and electrical products reached 9.36 trillion yuan, up 20.1%, accounting for 63.5% of total exports, up 3.5 percentage points compared to the same period last year. Exports of high-tech products reached 3.26 trillion yuan, up 39%. Import side, in H1, China's import growth outpaced exports by 8.7 percentage points, promoting balanced development of imports and exports. Within this, imports rose for energy and other bulk commodities (3.4%), mechanical and electrical products (28%), and agricultural products (8.6%). Trading partner side, China's diversified markets continued to consolidate. In H1, China's imports and exports to Belt and Road partner countries totaled 12.97 trillion yuan, up 14.8%, accounting for 50.9% of total foreign trade. Imports and exports to neighboring countries reached 9.44 trillion yuan, up 20.6%. Trade with Latin America, Africa, and the EU expanded by 16.2%, 19.6%, and 10.2%, respectively. Business entity side, all types of business entities in China maintained good growth momentum. Imports and exports by private enterprises reached 14.53 trillion yuan, up 17%, accounting for 57% of total foreign trade. Imports and exports by foreign-invested enterprises and state-owned enterprises grew by 17.1% and 16.8%, respectively. Wang Jun, Deputy Commissioner of the General Administration of Customs, introduced at the press conference held by the State Council Information Office: Overall, China's foreign trade achieved remarkable results in H1. Meanwhile, the current external environment remains complex and volatile. The World Bank believes that the global economy is facing pressures from rising energy prices, intensifying inflationary pressure, and expectations of monetary policy tightening, leading to a weakening growth outlook. IMF forecast data shows that world economic growth is expected to slow from 3.5% last year to 3% this year, and the growth rate of goods and services trade volume is also expected to slow from 5% last year to 3.5% this year. In H2, China’s foreign trade will face some pressure, but with strong innovation momentum, robust market vitality, and a high level of openness, the fundamentals of foreign trade will remain solid, and the positive momentum in foreign trade development is expected to continue. Based on data released by the General Administration of Customs, SMM compiled the import and export situation of selected products in the metals industry, as follows: Exports: Rare earth exports in June 2026 5,104.8 mt, down 34.1% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative exports from January to June 2026 30,482.8 mt, down 6.4% YoY vs January to June 2025. Steel exports in June 2026 10.32 million mt, up 6.6% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative exports from January to June 2026 5,487.4 mt, YoY down 5.6 % vs January to June 2025. Unwrought aluminum and aluminum semis exports in June 2026 711,000 mt, up 45.4% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative exports from January to June 2026 3.396 million mt, up 16.3% YoY vs January to June 2025. Imports: Iron ore and concentrates imports in June 2026 112.689 million mt, up 6.4% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative imports from January to June 2026 628.868 million mt, up 6.3% YoY vs January to June 2025. Copper ore and concentrates imports in June 2026 2.335 10kt, down 0.6% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative imports from January to June 2026 14.609 10kt, down 0.9% YoY vs January to June 2025 . Coal and lignite imports in June 2026 42.779 10kt, up 29.5% YoY vs June 2025 . Cumulative imports from January to June 2026 225.4 million mt, up 1.7% YoY vs January to June 2025 . In June 2026, rare earth imports reached 6,261.5 mt, down 25.3% YoY from June 2025 . In January-June 2026, cumulative imports totaled 53,886.6 mt, down 6.1% YoY from January-June 2025. In June 2026, steel imports reached 441,000 mt, down 6.2% YoY from June 2025. In January-June 2026, cumulative imports totaled 2.696 million mt, down 11.3% YoY from January-June 2025. In June 2026, imports of unwrought copper and copper semis reached 478,000 mt, up 3% YoY from June 2025 . In January-June 2026, cumulative imports totaled 2.491 million mt, down 5.3 % YoY from January-June 2025.

[SMM Steel] Market feedback indicates that for September shipment, the FOB price of Q235B medium-thickness plates, specifications 14-30mm, was settled at $530/mt, shipped from Jingtang Port, destined for Africa, with a trading volume of approximately 200 mt.

[SMM Rare Earth Flash] Australian rare earth developer Hastings Technology Metals announced that it will double the capacity of its hydrometallurgical plant in Kabin Buri, Thailand, increasing the annual production of mixed rare earth chloride (MREC) from the originally planned 6,000 mt to 12,000 mt. The plant plans to achieve first production in Q1 2027. It will prioritize processing monazite concentrates from Africa. The company has signed a supply agreement with strategic partner Enuo Holdings for 10,000 mt of monazite concentrates per year. Adopting a modular design, the plant has the potential for further expansion to an annual production of 36,000 mt.

According to feedback from an Indian refinery, the relevant national authorities have issued a directive to prioritise domestic sulfur supply and ban exports, in order to safeguard local availability. Trade data shows that India's sulfur exports are heavily concentrated on the Chinese market. According to WITS data, in 2024 India's exports of crude or unrefined sulphur totalled approximately US$81.02 million, with a volume of about 805.2 million kg (approximately 805,200 tonnes). Among this, exports to China reached US$78.33 million, with a volume of about 797.2 million kg (approximately 797,200 tonnes), accounting for roughly 99% of India's total sulfur exports. Other major destinations included Tanzania, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Australia, but in very limited quantities. Previously, Indian industry lobbying groups had repeatedly called on the New Delhi government to ban sulfur exports. Of India's annual sulfur demand of about 2 million tonnes, more than half is met by imports, nearly half of which come from the Middle East. The immediate trigger for this export ban is the severe disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz caused by geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East, which has continuously tightened global sulfur supply.

This week (July 13-16), the weekly average B/L transaction price range for Yangshan copper premiums was $84-95/mt, QP August, averaging $90/mt; the weekly average warrant transaction price range was $85-95/mt, QP August, averaging $90/mt; and EQ copper CIF B/L was $53-61/mt, QP August, averaging $57/mt. As of July 16, the ex-FX SHFE/LME copper price ratio for LME copper against the SHFE copper 2608 contract stood at 1.1426, with an import loss around 374.65 yuan/mt, widening from the prior period. As of Thursday, the LME copper front-end was in a contango structure, with the spread between the August and September dates at −$7.45/mt. Currently, mainstream offer indications for pyrometallurgical registered copper B/L are around $100-110/mt, and for EQ copper CIF B/L around $65-70/mt. This week, Yangshan copper premiums continued their upward momentum, still driven primarily by expectations of persistently tight market supply, which prompted suppliers to hold back from selling. Available cargoes were scarce during the week, and domestic social inventory continued destocking, giving upstream sellers strong confidence to hold prices firm. Spot premiums repeatedly hit new highs for the year, but downstream demand showed mediocre performance, with limited actual transactions. On the price ratio front, the ratio weakened over the week, yet sellers held an optimistic outlook for the near term. Overall, sellers’ firm pricing and downstream fear of high prices intertwined, presenting a weak supply-demand picture. According to SMM, as of Thursday (July 16), domestic bonded zone copper inventories increased by about 3,300 mt WoW from July 13 to 38,900 mt. Shanghai bonded inventory rose 2,900 mt WoW to 34,800 mt, and Guangdong bonded inventory rose 400 mt WoW to 4,100 mt. The bonded zone inventory shifted from destocking to buildup, mainly because some suppliers took an optimistic view on future premiums and the price ratio, showing low willingness to sell and leading to reduced warehouse withdrawals. Looking ahead, amid the siphoning effect from North America and production losses in Africa due to rising production costs, the market will continue to trade the tight availability of cargoes in the near term. However, it is worth noting that LME cancelled warrants have increased significantly recently, and according to SMM, some cargoes are already being shipped to China. Attention should be paid to the volume of this supply replenishment and the downstream's actual consumption capacity to absorb the high premiums.

[SMM PGM Express] Iridium prices are currently supported by structurally tight supply and growing demand from the clean energy sector, despite ongoing efforts to reduce material intensity through recycling and catalyst optimisation. The metal's price continues to be influenced by limited primary production, which has remained broadly stable at around 7 tonnes annually in recent years because iridium is produced solely as a by-product of platinum and palladium mining. Supply remains highly concentrated, with South Africa accounting for more than 80% of global refined iridium output, leaving the market vulnerable to production disruptions and geopolitical risks. At the same time, demand continues to strengthen, driven by expanding deployment of proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysers for green hydrogen production, alongside growing use in advanced electrochemical catalysts, electronics and specialty industrial applications. To address persistent supply constraints, producers and refiners are accelerating investment in recycling and closed-loop recovery. Secondary supply has become an increasingly important source of iridium, helping improve market resilience while reducing dependence on primary mining. Although catalyst thrifting and substitution research are progressing, commercially viable alternatives remain limited, supporting a firm medium-term outlook for iridium prices.

As of June 30, LME nickel Open Tonnage stood at 265,044 mt, up 2,448 mt from May 29, or up 0.9% MoM, showing a mild inventory buildup overall. From the perspective of origin structure, Chinese-origin nickel inventory increased by 738 mt to 186,384 mt, and Indonesian-origin nickel increased by 894 mt to 19,338 mt, which were the main sources of the inventory increase this month; Finnish- and South African-origin nickel each increased by 354 mt. Chinese-origin nickel still accounted for approximately 70.3% of LME nickel inventory, indicating a high concentration of origin.

As of June 30, LME nickel Open Tonnage stood at 265,044 mt, up 2,448 mt from May 29, or up 0.9% MoM, showing a mild inventory buildup overall. From the perspective of origin structure, Chinese-origin nickel inventory increased by 738 mt to 186,384 mt, and Indonesian-origin nickel increased by 894 mt to 19,338 mt, which were the main sources of the inventory increase this month; Finnish- and South African-origin nickel each increased by 354 mt. Chinese-origin nickel still accounted for approximately 70.3% of LME nickel inventory, indicating a high concentration of origin.

[SMM Daily Chrome Review: Ore Prices Rebound Slightly, Ferrochrome Remains Stable for Now] July 15, 2026 – The ferrochrome and chrome ore markets fluctuated slightly...

[SMM Silicon-Based PV Morning Meeting Minutes] Silicon metal: Yesterday, SMM oxygen-blown #553 silicon in east China was near 9,100-9,200 yuan/mt, and #441 silicon was near 9,200-9,300 yuan/mt. The most-traded futures contract consolidated at 8,450-8,500 yuan/mt. The spot-futures price spread of silicon metal strengthened, and coupled with persistently high road freight rates, silicon metal prices in east China stayed relatively firm. Cost support at the bottom for futures prices remains clear, while the upside is capped by the supply-demand relationship, keeping silicon metal prices moving sideways in a narrow range. Wafers: In the market, 18X wafer prices were 0.85-0.87 yuan/piece, 210RN wafers 0.95-0.97 yuan/piece, and 210N wafers 1.15-1.17 yuan/piece. This round, the low end of the range for 210R and 210N wafers edged down by 0.01 yuan/piece, and current prices represent actual trading levels, with overall wafer prices well-supported.