The minutes of Tianhe Magnetics' investor briefing held on May 7 showed: 1. What is the trend in the revenue share of the NEV business, and how is the recovery in wind power, consumer electronics, and other segments? Tianhe Magnetics responded: Hello, thank you for your attention! The company's products are widely used in NEVs and parts, wind power, energy-efficient home appliances, consumer electronics, and other fields. Its clients are all industry leaders, and the company has been deeply integrated into the core supply chains of top-tier players in and outside China. During the reporting period, NEVs and parts remained the downstream segment with the highest share; wind power and consumer electronics segments recovered and grew YoY. The company adheres to a diversified strategy, deepens strategic cooperation with clients, strengthens client loyalty, and continues to expand downstream applications to support steady business growth. 2. What is the specific progress of "small-batch delivery" of dedicated magnets for humanoid robots, and what is the expected revenue contribution? Tianhe Magnetics responded: Hello, thank you for your attention! In the humanoid robot field, the company works closely with relevant clients to jointly conduct R&D and trial production of related projects. The specific revenue contribution is directly linked to the promotion and application progress of humanoid robots. 3. Against the backdrop of tightening rare earth export controls, how can the sustainability of the 44% ex-China business be ensured? Tianhe Magnetics responded: Hello, thank you for your attention! The company coordinates and obtains export licenses from the Ministry of Commerce in an orderly manner based on client orders to ensure the smooth and sustained operation of its export business. At the same time, the company actively expands markets outside China, deepens engagement with existing clients and develops new clients, increases efforts in developing zero-heavy-rare-earth products, and scales up product exports to ensure steady growth in ex-China performance. Tianhe Magnetics' Q1 2026 report disclosed on April 28 showed: the company achieved total operating revenue of 594 million yuan, up 13.12% YoY; net profit attributable to the parent company was 47.873 million yuan, up 33.41% YoY. Tianhe Magnetics' Q1 report showed: raw material prices remained at high levels, and selling prices of some sales orders were raised, which in turn affected related profit indicators. Tianhe Magnetics' annual report showed: 2025 was the inaugural year of Tianhe Magnetics' entry into the capital market, and the company embarked on a new phase of high-quality development. Positioned at the forefront of the industry, amid the trend of high-end, intelligent, and green development in the rare earth industry, the company anchored on technological innovation and intelligent management as its core, deepened collaborative partnerships with clients, continuously optimized its supply chain layout, steadily released capacity from IPO-funded projects, and progressively implemented automated production line upgrades and green process improvements. Meanwhile, the company actively expanded its product portfolio and industrial reach into injection-molded magnets, bonded magnets, and magnetic assemblies to provide clients with comprehensive rare earth permanent magnet solutions. In addition, the company accelerated its positioning in emerging sectors such as humanoid robots and the low-altitude economy to build momentum for long-term growth. In 2025, the company achieved operating revenue of 2.346 billion yuan, down 9.47% YoY, total profit of 170.908 million yuan, up 18.81% YoY, and net profit of 161.161 million yuan, up 18.43% YoY. In its annual report, when introducing its main business, products, and application fields, Tianhe Magnetics stated: The company is a leading high performance rare earth permanent magnet material provider in China. With the corporate vision of "being a leader in permanent magnet material innovation," the company is primarily engaged in the R&D, production, and sales of high performance rare earth permanent magnet materials such as sintered NdFeB and sintered SmCo, while extending its industrial reach into injection-molded magnets, bonded magnets, and magnetic assemblies to provide clients with comprehensive rare earth permanent magnet solutions. With independent R&D and technological innovation at its core, and guided by the application scenarios and development needs of downstream cutting-edge fields such as NEVs and auto parts, wind power generation, intelligent manufacturing, and 3C consumer electronics, as well as emerging industries such as humanoid robots and the low-altitude economy, the company effectively leverages the fundamental and pioneering role of rare earth permanent magnets as key strategic materials, continuously advancing the innovation and application of high performance, resource-efficient rare earth permanent magnet materials to drive downstream technological innovation, product upgrades, and industrial transformation. Regarding the company's business plan, Tianhe Magnetics stated in its annual report: 2026 is the second year since Tianhe Magnetics' listing and the opening year of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Standing at a new starting point, the company adopts "innovation" as its annual development theme, upholds the philosophy of "breaking conventions and embracing change," and continues to deepen its presence in the high performance rare earth permanent magnet material field. Leveraging its two rare earth bases in Baotou, the company plans to focus on core technology upgrades and high-end market expansion both in and outside China, seize the strategic opportunities of the global energy transition and intelligent development, and drive "development" through "innovation." Under the leadership of the board of directors, the company plans to further integrate resources, leverage its strengths, and systematically advance various initiatives around its business objectives to ensure high-quality and sustainable development. In 2026, the company plans to focus on the following initiatives: 1. With "innovation" at the core, continuously strengthen R&D investment and drive product and technology upgrades. 2. Pursue new frontiers: focus on expanding new products, new clients, and new markets. 3. Continuously strengthen production and quality management to improve yield and turnover efficiency. 4. Deepen the construction of digital smart factories to continuously enhance production efficiency. 5. Steadily advance IPO-funded and new project construction to expand capacity and support performance growth. (1) Continue to advance IPO-funded project construction. In 2026, the company plans to continue advancing the implementation of IPO-funded projects as planned. Upon full production, the company will reach an annual capacity of 12,300 mt. The company plans to continuously improve manufacturing efficiency through automated production line upgrades, digital management system deployment, and green production process transformation, ensuring capacity alignment across all stages from blank production to finished product inspection, and laying a solid foundation for performance growth. (2) Advance the Tianhe New Materials project construction. The Phase I of the "Tianhe New Materials Rare Earth Zero-Carbon Industrial Park (High Performance Rare Earth Permanent Magnets and Assemblies, Equipment Manufacturing and R&D Project)" invested and constructed by the company's subsidiary Tianhe New Materials has been launched. Upon completion, the project will further expand the business scale and enhance the company's overall profitability, market competitiveness, and risk resilience. 6. Enhance intelligent equipment manufacturing capabilities and cultivate new growth drivers. 7. Management empowerment: continuously strengthen organizational and talent development. 8. Continue to improve ESG efforts and promote sustainable development. 9. Strengthen investor relations and market capitalization management to drive sustained enhancement of company value. When disclosing the risk of raw material price fluctuations, Tianhe Magnetics stated: The main raw materials required for the company's production are rare earth metals, which are relatively expensive and subject to notable fluctuations due to multiple factors including macro economy, trade environment, industrial policies, and market supply and demand. Although rare earth permanent magnet material enterprises can dynamically adjust product selling prices based on factors such as raw material price changes, some existing order prices are locked in, and price adjustments for new orders also involve negotiation cycles, so product price adjustments typically lag behind raw material price fluctuations. If raw material prices continue to swing wildly in the future and the company fails to respond in a timely and effective manner, it may adversely affect business performance. Countermeasures: To address this risk, the company continuously strengthens supply chain management, signs long-term agreements with major suppliers to establish stable partnerships, and implements a scientific raw material reserve strategy to smooth out the impact of price fluctuations. A review of the 2025 price performance of Pr-Nd alloy, a key raw material for NdFeB, showed: the average price of Pr-Nd alloy on December 31, 2025 was 735,000 yuan/mt, up 50.31% compared with its average price of 489,000 yuan/mt on December 31, 2024. The annual daily average price of Pr-Nd alloy in 2025 was 602,181.07 yuan/mt, up 117,476.52 yuan/mt or 24.24% YoY compared with the annual daily average price of 484,704.55 yuan/mt in 2024. A review of the price trend of Pr-Nd alloy in Q1 this year showed: the average price of Pr-Nd alloy on March 31 this year was 880,000 yuan/mt, up 145,000 yuan/mt or 19.73% compared with its average price of 735,000 yuan/mt on December 31, 2025. The daily average price of Pr-Nd alloy in Q1 this year was 913,035.71 yuan/mt, up 385,018.17 yuan/mt or 72.92% compared with the Q1 2025 daily average price of 528,017.54 yuan/mt. On May 8, the price of Pr-Nd alloy was 925,000–930,000 yuan/mt, with an average price of 927,500 yuan/mt, down 0.8% from the previous trading day. Currently, rare earth market prices continue to weaken. Pr-Nd market, downstream purchasing inquiries showed no improvement, and suppliers of oxides maintained a low-price selling strategy to facilitate shipments. However, Pr-Nd oxide futures prices recovered somewhat on the morning of May 8, narrowing the price decline of Pr-Nd oxide. Metal market, constrained by sluggish downstream inquiries, factories showed limited willingness to actively quote, and some suppliers chose to continue lowering their offers. However, as the decline in spot oxide prices narrowed, the actual decline in Pr-Nd alloy prices also narrowed. Nevertheless, downstream wait-and-see sentiment remained strong, and the market trading atmosphere did not see effective improvement. In the short term, Pr-Nd product prices are expected to move sideways amid the tug-of-war between upstream and downstream players.

SMM May 8: In the first week after the holiday, prices of most cobalt products remained stable. Spot refined cobalt prices also held steady after rising 3,500 yuan/mt on the first trading day post-holiday. Meanwhile, spot cobalt sulphate prices stopped falling and stabilized after the holiday. The market currently holds an optimistic view on downstream production schedules for May. Under these circumstances, how will cobalt series products perform? SMM compiled the relevant price changes of cobalt series products this week, as follows: : According to SMM spot prices, spot refined cobalt prices rose post-holiday and then maintained a fluctuating trend this week. As of May 8, spot refined cobalt prices rose to 422,000-429,000 yuan/mt, with an average price of 425,500 yuan/mt, up 3,500 yuan/mt from 422,000 yuan/mt on the last trading day before the holiday, a gain of 0.83%. Supply and demand side, on the supply side, mainstream refined cobalt smelters slightly raised ex-factory prices, while other smelters maintained parity; traders lowered the spot-futures price spread of mainstream brands to a premium of 7,000-8,000 yuan/mt to accelerate capital turnover. On the demand side, downstream alloy and magnetic material enterprises continued to maintain just-in-need restocking strategies, strictly controlling raw material inventory risks. From the price ratio perspective, the metal price spread between refined cobalt prices and low-priced cobalt salts has narrowed significantly, and enterprises' willingness to produce refined cobalt through re-dissolution has pulled back accordingly. In the short term, refined cobalt prices are expected to move sideways, and future price rises still need effective support from cobalt salt prices. Cobalt salt ( and ): : According to SMM spot prices, spot cobalt sulphate prices stopped falling and stabilized this week. As of May 8, spot cobalt sulphate prices remained at 93,000-95,800 yuan/mt, with an average price of 94,500 yuan/mt, flat compared with the April 30 quote. Supply and demand side, mainstream cobalt sulphate brand price centers remained in the range of 93,000-96,000 yuan/mt. Driven by the rebound in refined cobalt prices, some smelters and traders that previously offered discounts for shipments have slightly raised their quotes, and low-priced resources below 90,000 yuan/mt have decreased notably. On the demand side, downstream enterprises were still consuming previous inventory overall, with weak purchase willingness to enter the market, and only a few with just-in-need requirements restocked in small quantities at low prices. However, some Co3O4 enterprises have recently increased inquiry activities, and procurement sentiment showed signs of recovery. Production schedule side, ternary and LCO enterprises both saw restorative increases in May production schedules MoM. It is expected that as downstream gradually initiates restocking, cobalt sulphate prices are likely to see a phased recovery rebound. : According to SMM spot quotes, post-holiday cobalt chloride spot prices edged up 250 yuan/mt on May 8, quoted at 114,200-117,000 yuan/mt, with an average price of 115,600 yuan/mt. In terms of market performance, post-holiday cobalt chloride spot market generally reported scarce inquiries. On the supply side, shipments from some top-tier players declined significantly recently, with liquidity under pressure and quotes slightly loosened; while small and medium-sized producers had already lowered quotes earlier due to capital recovery and shipment pressure, and have gradually stabilized recently, with very limited downside room for further price cuts. On the demand side, downstream Co3O4 enterprises, affected by weak demand, faced significant shipment pressure themselves, with weak purchase willingness for cobalt chloride; in contrast, cathode material and battery cell segments showed restocking willingness recently as inventory continued to be depleted. Overall, the market still lacks clear momentum for a price breakthrough. Although occasional low-price transactions occurred, constrained by enterprise performance pressure, capital conditions, and shipment volumes, they were unlikely to have a significant impact on the overall market. SMM believes that current cobalt chloride prices have limited downside room, with raw material costs providing strong bottom support. Cobalt chloride market is expected to remain stable in the near term, with substantive changes likely to wait until mid-to-late May. : According to SMM spot quotes, post-holiday Co3O4 spot prices remained stable. As of May 8, Co3O4 spot prices were maintained at 360,000-367,000 yuan/mt, with an average price of 363,500 yuan/mt, stable compared to pre-holiday levels. Spot market, according to SMM, the post-holiday Co3O4 market continued the sluggish trend from before the holiday. Top-tier players slightly lowered their quotes, but as cobalt intermediate products were in a phase of tight supply and cobalt chloride prices remained firm, effective cost support was provided for Co3O4 prices. Downstream LCO material enterprises continued to purchase as needed, mainly restocking in small quantities based on orders on hand, with market inquiry activity maintained at a neutral level. Looking ahead, end-use demand performance remains the core variable determining cathode material procurement intensity. Considering that market expectations for May are generally optimistic, attention should be paid to whether demand recovery can break the prolonged stable pattern and bring phased changes. Raw material cobalt intermediate products: According to SMM spot quotes, cobalt intermediate products (CIF China) spot prices remained stable post-holiday. As of May 8, cobalt intermediate products (CIF China) spot prices were maintained at $25.8-26.2/lb, with an average price of $26/lb. Supply and demand side, on the supply side, according to SMM, most suppliers held relatively optimistic expectations for the market outlook, with offers continuing to stay above $26/lb. On the demand side, there was no significant change. Affected by insufficient momentum for cobalt salt prices to follow the upward trend, the market maintained only small volumes of just-in-time procurement, with intended transaction prices fluctuating around $25.8/lb. Shipping side, DRC cobalt intermediate product cargoes remained stranded at South African ports and in overland transportation. In April, only a few miners completed small-batch vessel bookings, with arrivals expected from May to June. Dragged by tight shipping capacity on African routes, the remaining large-volume cargoes may be delayed until July for concentrated arrivals. Looking ahead, as downstream orders gradually materialize and restocking demand is progressively released, cobalt intermediate product prices still have room for upward recovery. News side, recently, multiple enterprises along the cobalt industry chain released their Q1 earnings reports. Tengyuan Cobalt reported that the company achieved revenue of 2.559 billion yuan in Q1 2026, up 75.13% YoY; net profit attributable to shareholders of the publicly listed firm was 531 million yuan, up 330.11% YoY. In addition, the company also released its 2025 annual report, showing total revenue of 8.34 billion yuan in 2025, up 27.47% YoY; net profit attributable to shareholders of the publicly listed firm was 11.11 yuan, up 62.11% YoY. Meanwhile, the gross margin of its main products reached 27.73%, up 5.74% YoY, and cobalt production and sales hit new historical highs. Regarding the reasons for the company's strong performance growth during the reporting period, Tengyuan Cobalt stated that first, the company operated steadily and established a diversified raw material procurement system with strong supply security capabilities. In particular, the stable supply of secondary resources or recycled raw materials effectively hedged against the impact of fluctuations in primary ore procurement, effectively enhancing supply chain resilience and providing support for performance growth. Second, as capacity from fundraising investment projects was gradually released, and benefiting from YoY increases in market prices of metals such as cobalt and copper, the company's product production, sales, and profitability improved significantly, with economies of scale becoming more evident. Third, the company continued to promote lean management reform, comprehensively implemented cost reduction and efficiency improvement measures, enhanced operational efficiency through strict cost control, and continuously optimized its client structure, strengthening overall profitability. As of the end of Q1 2026, Tengyuan Cobalt had capacity of 31,500 mt in metal content of cobalt products (including 8,000 mt of refined cobalt), 10,000 mt in metal content of nickel products, 10,000 mt in metal content of manganese products, 60,000 mt of copper products, 20,000 mt of ternary cathode precursor, 10,000 mt of Co3O4, and 5,000 mt of lithium carbonate. In addition, Tengyuan Cobalt stated that the pricing of its cobalt products such as cobalt sulphate and cobalt chloride is based onprices, adjusted according to discount coefficients and price fluctuations. Tengyuan Cobalt also stated that the company's core products have been widely used in traditional end-use sectors such as consumer electronics, NEVs, and aerospace, and are continuously extending into emerging technology fields empowered by AI. In particular, the company's Co3O4 and related product series are primarily used in high-end LCO systems, fully compatible with product terminals requiring high energy density and high stability battery applications. Targeting emerging technology tracks, the company is leveraging its own advantages to actively enter rapidly growing fields such as solid-state batteries, humanoid robots, eVTOL, low-altitude economy, AI computing infrastructure, and high-end energy storage. As emerging markets gradually scale up in the future, the company will rely on its advantages in raw material supply, high-purity manufacturing technology, and client resources to continuously optimize its product mix, consolidating its strengths in traditional sectors while fully benefiting from the growing material demand driven by the development of emerging technology industries. It is also worth noting that as of March 31, 2026, the company's fundraised investment project — the "Annual 30,000 mt Copper and 2,000 mt Cobalt Hydrometallurgy Smelter Project" — had passed the reviews of China's Ministry of Commerce and the Jiangxi Provincial Development and Reform Commission, and obtained the enterprise overseas investment certificate. The joint venture company (Xincheng New Energy Investment Co., Ltd.) and the project company (Hechuang New Energy Mining Simplified Joint-Stock Company) had been established. Currently, the overall project progress is in line with the planned schedule, with project design, land leveling, and main building civil works completed, and installation of main equipment currently underway. Hanrui Cobalt previously released its Q1 report, stating that the company achieved operating revenue of 1.865 billion yuan in Q1 2026, up 24.19% YoY, with net profit attributable to shareholders of the publicly listed firm at 64.7465 million yuan, up 51.07% YoY. The performance change was mainly attributable to increased sales volume and prices of copper products as well as sales of nickel products.

Indonesian state-owned steel giant PT Krakatau Steel (Persero) Tbk (IDX: KRAS, hereinafter referred to as "Krakatau") released its 2025 consolidated financial statements on March 31, 2026. On the surface, the company recorded a net profit of 339.6 million USD (approximately 5.68 trillion IDR), its best performance since 2019. However, unpacking the core steel business reveals that the steel segment's operating loss in 2025 actually widened from 40.79 million USD in 2024 to 102.5 million USD.

2025 annual reports show that companies with captive phosphate rock (BATIAN, Chuanjinnuo, Xingfa) posted profit growth of 122%-158%, while those relying on purchased raw materials (LiuGuo Chemical lost RMB 456 million, Lubei Chemical profit fell 85%) struggled. The pattern of "who owns mines, owns profits" is entrenched.

[SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: U.S.-Iran Ceasefire Agreement Remains in Effect, LME Zinc Center Moves Higher] Overnight, LME zinc was closed for the Easter holiday. Overnight, SHFE zinc was closed for the Qingming Festival holiday. The market awaited further signals on the U.S.-Iran situation ahead of Trump's "deadline." Significant uncertainty remained over the Middle East situation, while ex-China social inventory stayed low. LME zinc was expected to hold up well with a fluctuating trend, with attention on macro developments.

Hesheng Co., Ltd. disclosed its 2025 annual report on April 29. In 2025, the company achieved total operating revenue of 4.011 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 20.34%; net profit attributable to the parent company was 155 million yuan, a year-on-year increase of 92.47%.

[SMM Magnesium Express] On April 28, Wuzhongda Group Joint Stock Company (Wuzhongda) released its 2025 annual report. The report revealed that in the processing of magnesium-aluminum new materials, the full industrial chain layout has achieved positive results. In 2025, this segment achieved operating revenue of 2.787 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 32.59%; total profit reached 222 million yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 66.92%. The report also disclosed that by the end of 2025, its subsidiary Qixin Alloy Materials Co., Ltd. had a primary magnesium production capacity of 73,000 tons, and it is expected that the production capacity will exceed 100,000 tons by the end of 2026, further consolidating its leading position in the primary magnesium smelting industry.

[SMM Magnesium Flash News] On the evening of April 28, Baowu Magnesium Industry released its 2025 annual report, showing that in 2025, the company's revenue reached 9.912 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 10.34%; the net profit attributable to the parent company was -18.5489 million yuan, turning from profit to loss year-on-year. The change in the company's performance was mainly affected by the continuous decline in magnesium prices, resulting in a significant year-on-year decrease in the profitability of the magnesium materials business; at the same time, the new project of the company's associated company, Anhui Baomei Light Alloy Co., Ltd., was in the production ramp-up stage, with low output and high costs, and combined with the low magnesium prices.

[SMM Aluminum News Flash] Recently, Guangdong Hongtu Technology (Holdings) Co., Ltd. released its 2025 annual report. The report showed that in the field of ultra-large integrated die-casting equipment, the company had proactively deployed 6800T - 16000T ultra-large intelligent die-casting units, among which the 16000T ultra-large intelligent die-casting unit was the largest tonnage equipment in mass production globally. The company's business structure was shifting toward the NEV sector. As a core product under key development, integrated castings achieved significant revenue growth, with 2025 revenue exceeding 500 million yuan, up over 200% YoY.

In 2025, the global NEV and new-type energy storage markets continued to boom. Chinese lithium battery enterprises, leveraging their technological expertise and scale advantages, continued to dominate the global supply chain.