Historically, domestic zinc concentrate production typically declines continuously from December to February each year. There are two main reasons: first, some mines undergo routine shutdowns in winter due to weather conditions; second, the Chinese New Year holiday falls early in the year, during which many mines suspend operations or conduct maintenance. As this year's Chinese New Year holiday approaches, how will these factors specifically affect domestic zinc concentrate supply？

As of Thursday this week, the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index stood at 31,635 yuan/mt, with the quotation range for battery-grade nickel sulphate between 31,400-32,500 yuan/mt, and the average price WoW remained flat.

Silver prices edged up today, with the spread of spot market quotations continuing to widen. In Shanghai, suppliers held prices firm with TD premiums at 1,700-1,800 yuan/kg and were reluctant to sell, while some traders slightly lowered premiums to 1,500 yuan/kg for inventory clearance ahead of the holiday due to concerns such as potential post-holiday declines in spot premiums. It is understood that consumption in the Shenzhen market improved slightly compared to earlier, with some downstream enterprises and jewelers purchasing silver ingot raw materials to ensure normal production during the Chinese New Year holiday due to special reasons such as rush orders and delivery deadlines. The Chinese New Year holiday atmosphere remains strong, with a significant reduction in supplier quotations and an overall slowdown in actual market transactions.

As of now, the FOB price of Indonesian MHP nickel is $15,015/mt Ni, and the FOB price of Indonesian MHP cobalt is $49,462/mt Co. The MHP payable indicator (against the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index) is 88-88.5, and the MHP cobalt element payable indicator (against SMM refined cobalt (Rotterdam warehouse)) is 91. The FOB price of Indonesian high-grade nickel matte is $15,511/mt Ni.

[SMM Hydrogen Energy Express] On February 11, Handan Biomass Green Methanol Phase I Project issued a tender for the biomass gasification process package and technical services. The project's main entity is Windey Energy Technology Group Co., Ltd. It is understood that the project primarily adopts the biomass pressurized bubbling fluidized bed gasification process, with the scope of the process package extending from the atmospheric raw material receiving bin of the gasification framework to the outlet of the syngas scrubber, including the ash and slag discharge unit, and wastewater discharge after ammonia stripping treatment.

[SMM Aluminum Morning Meeting Minutes: Overall Warm Macro Front Contends with Inventory Buildup Reality, Aluminum Prices Under Pressure and Fluctuating in the Short Term] In summary, aluminum prices are expected to continue their fluctuating trend under pressure in the short term, constrained above by the reality of inventory buildup and supported below by macro expectations. They are anticipated to remain in the doldrums with limited room for a rebound.

SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: LME copper opened at $13,357/mt overnight, fluctuated upward initially and touched a high of $13,480/mt, then the center of copper prices gradually moved downward to a low of $13,115/mt, before rebounding to close at $13,239/mt, up 1.06%, with trading volume reaching 26,500 lots and open interest at 326,000 lots, an increase of 893 lots from the previous session, overall showing bulls increasing positions. The most-traded SHFE copper contract 2603 opened at 103,620 yuan/mt overnight, climbed to 103,730 yuan/mt at the beginning of the session, then experienced wide swings and touched a low of 101,840 yuan/mt, before fluctuating upward to close at 102,190 yuan/mt, up 0.26%, with trading volume at 69,800 lots and open interest at 152,000 lots, a decrease of 6,478 lots from the previous session, overall showing bears reducing positions.

On February 11, the SMM battery-grade nickel sulphate index price was 31,628 yuan/mt, with the quotation range for battery-grade nickel sulphate at 31,400-32,500 yuan/mt, and the average price remained unchanged from the previous day.

Brazil seeks to avoid signing exclusive agreements on critical minerals with other countries, instead maintaining an open stance and pursuing partnerships with various nations. Recently, the U.S. government disclosed details of "Project Vault" (PV), an initiative led by the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) aimed at formulating a strategy to secure domestic supplies of critical minerals. The EXIM Board approved up to $10 billion in direct loans for PV, more than double the largest financing amount in the bank's history. PV is designed to shield U.S. domestic manufacturers from supply shocks, expand the production and processing of critical raw materials in the U.S., and fundamentally improve the state of the U.S. critical minerals industry.

[SMM Breaking News: Brazil Not Seeking Exclusive Critical Minerals Agreements] Brazil, in terms of critical minerals cooperation, does not seek to sign exclusive agreements with other countries but adopts an open stance, actively pursuing partnerships with various nations. Recently, the US government disclosed specific details of "Project Vault" (PV). This initiative, led by the US Export-Import Bank (EXIM), aims to formulate a strategy to secure the supply of critical minerals within the US. The EXIM board has approved up to $10 billion in direct loans for PV, an amount more than double the largest financing in the bank's history. Project Vault is dedicated to protecting domestic US manufacturers from supply shocks, promoting the expansion of production and processing scale for critical raw materials in the US, and fundamentally improving the overall condition of the US critical minerals industry.