On February 28, Israeli Air Force fighter jets crossed thousands of kilometers of airspace to conduct a daylight precision strike on the center of Tehran, Iran's capital, drawing significant market attention. How will this conflict impact zinc concentrates? .

Next week, the key macroeconomic data will include China's official manufacturing PMI for July, the US's ADP employment figures for July, the US's core PCE price index annual rate for June, the US's unemployment rate for July, and the US's seasonally adjusted non-farm payrolls for July. Additionally, important events include the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the US Fed announcing its interest rate decision, which is expected to remain unchanged. Meanwhile, He Lifeng, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Vice Premier of the State Council, will travel to Sweden from July 27 to 30 for economic and trade talks with the US side, mainly focusing on the US's upcoming implementation of tariffs on August 12. Regarding LME lead, the progress of US tariff negotiations has been positive, easing market pessimism. Coupled with the US President's continuous pressure on the US Fed to cut interest rates, the US dollar index has weakened, and non-ferrous metals have generally stopped falling and rebounded. Meanwhile, overseas lead and zinc mine production has decreased, putting significant pressure on lead concentrate supply, which also provides some support for lead prices. It is expected that the center of LME lead's operation will move higher next week, reaching $2,000-2,065/mt. Domestically, for SHFE lead, some primary lead smelters are still undergoing maintenance and have not fully resumed production, leading to prominent regional supply tightness. Spot discounts have narrowed and are trading towards premiums (against SMM #1 lead prices), which may boost lead prices to hold up well. Regarding secondary lead, the resumption of production is gradually progressing, and there are signs of improvement in the inverted price relationship between secondary refined lead and primary lead. Before the price spread between the two reverses, it will still support lead price increases. If premiums turn into discounts, it will mean that this factor is no longer considered favorable. It is expected that the most-traded SHFE lead contract will operate within the range of 16,800-17,100 yuan/mt next week. Spot price forecast: 16,700-16,950 yuan/mt. With the resolution of month-end factors and the initiation of new long-term contracts by downstream enterprises for the new month, procurement volumes for spot lead ingots may relatively decrease. Meanwhile, as lead prices stop falling and rebound, downstream risk-aversion sentiment eases, and it is expected that some purchasing demand will be released, with the two roughly offsetting each other. On the supply side, on the one hand, secondary lead enterprises are gradually resuming production, and primary lead enterprises also have expectations for resuming production. Next week, the circulation volume in the spot market will relatively increase, and spot premium trading will be difficult to rise further, and there is even an expectation for narrowing premiums.

China is a major player in the lead and zinc industry, with significant global shares in lead and zinc ore reserves, smelting capacity, and downstream consumption. As an important non-ferrous metal sector, the sustainable, healthy, and harmonious development of the lead and zinc industry is crucial to the national economy. With the rapid development of the lead and zinc industry, production processes and technical requirements are continuously improving, and environmental protection standards are becoming increasingly stringent. The performance of related production equipment and suppliers directly impacts production efficiency, product quality, and environmental compliance. The rapid development of the lead and zinc industry is supported by high-quality equipment suppliers. As market competition intensifies, excellent suppliers can provide better solutions for lead and zinc mines and smelters, offering strong technical and hardware support to the industry. Based on this, SMM, in collaboration with an expert panel composed of industry chain enterprises, conducted expert evaluations of nominated companies. Combined with online voting results and SMM's corporate rating model scores, the final selection was made for the 2025 SMM Lead and Zinc Mine and Smelting Equipment Supplier Awards—Outstanding Contribution Award . The award ceremony was grandly held at the 2025 SMM (20th) Lead and Zinc Conference and Industry Expo . 2025 SMM Lead and Zinc Mine and Smelting Equipment Supplier Awards—Outstanding Contribution Award (the following companies are listed in no particular order) Yantai Jinpeng Mining Machinery Co., Ltd. Liming Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. Shenzhen SINOAUDE Technology Co., Ltd. Shandong Xinhai Mining Technology & Equipment Inc. Hunan Ruiyi Resources and Environment Technology Co., Ltd. Fujian Weibao Industrial Robot Co., Ltd. Hebei Changliang Engineering Technology Co., Ltd. Xinxiang Zhonglian Oxygen-Rich Side Blowing Technology Development Co., Ltd. Beijing Ruideke Pneumatic Conveying Technology Co., Ltd. Zhuzhou Torch Industrial Furnace Co., Ltd. Qingdao Hongcang Technology Co., Ltd. Xinxiang Xinfeng Head Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Gaia (Nanjing) Mining Equipment Co., Ltd. Zhekuang Heavy Industry Co., Ltd. Suzhou Du'er Oxygen Equipment Co., Ltd. Zhejiang Yicheng Environmental Protection Equipment Co., Ltd. Here, SMM congratulates the above companies and thanks all industry colleagues for their support!

【SMM Analysis: As Q1 Nears Its End, What Is the Resumption Pace of Domestic Zinc Mines?】According to SMM, the year-end and the beginning of the year are the regular maintenance and shutdown periods for domestic lead and zinc mines. Affected by holidays and maintenance, the overall production dropped to a low level by the year-end. As Q2 approaches, some mines in the north that were previously shut down have gradually resumed operations. What is the current overall resumption pace? Will the rapid rebound in both domestic and international TCs impact the production schedule of miners this year...

[SMM Analysis: Domestic Lead and Zinc Mines Gradually Resume Production - What Is the Pace of Lead Concentrates Resumption?] According to SMM, the routine winter shutdown and maintenance of domestic lead and zinc concentrates began as early as December, with concentrated maintenance mainly occurring around the Chinese New Year holiday. After the Lantern Festival, what is the pace of lead concentrates production resumption? SMM provides an analysis for you.

[SMM Analysis: Domestic Lead and Zinc Mines Gradually Resume Production - What Is the Pace of Lead Concentrates Resumption?] According to SMM, the routine winter shutdown and maintenance of domestic lead and zinc concentrates began as early as December, with concentrated maintenance mainly occurring around the Chinese New Year holiday. After the Lantern Festival, what is the pace of lead concentrates production resumption? SMM provides an analysis for you.

[SMM Analysis: Supply Eases + Window Opens, Cumulative YoY Growth of Lead Concentrate Imports Exceeds 6% in 2024] According to customs data, the import volume of lead concentrates in December 2024 was 119,700 mt, up 26.16% MoM and up 35.89% YoY. The cumulative import volume of lead concentrates in 2024 reached 1.264 million mt in metal content, up 6.57% YoY. The main import sources of lead concentrates in December were Russia, Australia, and Peru, with the total import volume from these three countries accounting for 44.5%.

[SMM Analysis: Global Lead Ore Supply on the Rise, What About Long-Term Growth?] According to SMM's understanding and preliminary estimates, the growth trend of global lead ore supply for 2024-2026 has reached a consensus. However, smelters are generally concerned about the relatively limited output growth of lead concentrates or silver-lead ores associated with polymetallic ore projects. Additionally, as new projects enter stable operation phases, the growth in lead ore supply is expected to slow relatively during 2026-2028.

[SMM Analysis: Domestic Lead and Zinc Mines Gradually Enter Regular Shutdown Period - How Will Lead Concentrate Supply Reduction and Resumption Pace Unfold?] Domestic lead and zinc concentrates have gradually entered the regular Chinese New Year shutdown and maintenance period since December, with significant differences in holiday schedules among major domestic mines. A few mines in high-latitude regions are affected by factors such as climate, geology, and transportation, leading to a substantial increase in mining and processing costs. The longest shutdown and resumption preparation period can reach up to three months.

[SMM Analysis: Domestic Lead and Zinc Mines Gradually Enter Regular Shutdown Period - How Will Lead Concentrate Supply Reduction and Resumption Progress?] Domestic lead and zinc concentrates have gradually entered the regular Chinese New Year shutdown and maintenance period since December, with significant differences in holiday schedules among major domestic mines. A few mines in high-latitude regions are affected by factors such as climate, geology, and transportation, leading to a multiple-fold increase in mining and processing costs. The longest shutdown and resumption preparation period can reach up to three months.