SMM July 4 News: Metal market: Overnight, domestic base metals nearly all rose. SHFE copper rose 0.14%, SHFE aluminum rose 0.6%, SHFE lead rose 0.38%, SHFE zinc rose 0.87%, SHFE tin rose 3.8%. SHFE nickel dipped 0.02%. Additionally, the most-traded alumina futures fell 0.07%, and the benchmark casting aluminum futures rose 0.24%. Overnight, ferrous metals mostly rose. Stainless steel fell 1.85%, iron ore rose 0.27%, rebar rose 0.39%. Hot-rolled coil rose 0.4%. For coking coal and coke: the most-traded coking coal contract rose 1.21%, and the most-traded coke contract rose 1.6%. Overnight, in the overseas market, LME base metals all rose. LME copper rose 0.54%. LME aluminum rose 0.23%, LME lead rose 1.04%. LME zinc rose 2.17%. LME tin rose 4.99%. LME nickel rose 0.4%. Overnight, precious metals: COMEX gold rose 1.49%, with a weekly gain of 2.22%; COMEX silver rose 2.87%, with a weekly positive close and a gain of 5.26%. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE gold contract rose 0.81%, with a weekly gain of 3.5%; the most-traded SHFE silver contract rose 1.61%, with a weekly positive close and a gain of 8.82%. J.P. Morgan stated that gold prices may be constrained in the short term due to weakening demand and are expected to remain range-bound. The main reasons are reduced purchasing power in key demand areas and gold's renewed sensitivity to real interest rate changes, which may cap further price increases. However, the bank maintains a bullish view for the medium and long term. Gold is expected to gradually rebound in H2 2026, with an average price around $4,300 per ounce in Q3, rising to about $4,500 in Q4. Looking ahead to 2027, J.P. Morgan believes gold prices are likely to continue their upward trend, driven by factors including continued central bank purchasing, stronger physical demand, and persistent long-term structural allocation needs. These factors will underpin gold's long-term appeal as a safe-haven and reserve asset. As of 7:41 AM on July 4, overnight closing prices: Macro front Domestic side: [Li Qiang: Take more forceful measures and actions in building a modern industrial system, accelerating high-level technological self-reliance, building a strong domestic market, deepening reforms, and expanding opening-up.] On July 1, Li Qiang, Premier of the State Council and Secretary of the Party Leadership Group, presided over a meeting of the State Council Party Leadership Group to study and implement the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech at the celebration of the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China and Xi Jinping's thoughts on party building. The meeting emphasized the need to strive for new achievements in high-quality development, strengthen initiative and a sense of urgency in work, and take more robust measures and actions in building a modern industrial system, accelerating self-reliance in high-level science and technology, developing a strong domestic market, and deepening reform and expanding opening up. It called for taking solid action, shouldering responsibilities, and striving to carry forward the baton of history, so as to make greater contributions to building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation. (Xinhua News Agency) [The State Council: Increasing Efforts in Energy Conservation and Carbon Reduction Transformation in Key Industries such as Steel and Non-Ferrous Metals to Achieve Energy Savings of More Than 150 Million mt of Standard Coal] Recently, the State Council issued the “15th Five-Year Plan for Building a Beautiful China,” clarifying the overall requirements, targets and indicators, key tasks, and major projects for comprehensively advancing the building of a Beautiful China during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. The Plan proposes that by 2030, the quality of the ecological environment will be comprehensively improved, and new significant progress will be made in building a Beautiful China. Green production and lifestyles will be essentially in place, the carbon peak target will be met as scheduled, total emissions of major pollutants will continue to decline, comprehensive solid waste management capacity and level will be significantly enhanced, urban and rural living environments will be notably improved, the diversity, stability, and sustainability of ecosystems will be continuously strengthened, nuclear and radiation safety levels will keep rising, national ecological security will be effectively guaranteed, an ecological and environmental governance system adapted to the requirements of building a Beautiful China will be steadily refined, a number of demonstration models for building a Beautiful China will be established, and the people’s sense of gain, happiness, and security from the ecological environment will be continuously enhanced. It also makes an outlook on the 2035 targets and proposes accelerating the formation of the overall layout for building a Beautiful China. (Xinhua News Agency) The Plan mentions increasing efforts in energy conservation and carbon reduction transformation in key industries such as thermal power, steel, non-ferrous metals, petrochemicals, chemicals, and building materials, promoting and popularizing energy-saving and low-carbon technologies, and achieving energy savings of more than 150 million mt of standard coal. With the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and surrounding areas as the focus, industrial coal-fired boilers with a capacity of 65 steam tonnes per hour or below will be gradually phased out. The substitution of clean energy for coal-fired boilers and industrial kilns in industries such as food, textiles, and papermaking will be advanced. [Ministry of Finance and Two Other Departments: Adjusting Vehicle and Vessel Tax Preferential Policies for Energy-Saving Vehicles and NEVs] On July 2, the Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued an announcement on adjusting vehicle and vessel tax preferential policies for energy-saving vehicles and new energy vehicles. It states that from January 1, 2027, the policy of halving vehicle and vessel tax for energy-saving vehicles will be abolished, and the exemption from vehicle and vessel tax for pure electric commercial vehicles, plug-in hybrid (including extended-range) vehicles, and fuel cell commercial vehicles will be abolished. Vehicles of the above types newly acquired by taxpayers or acquired before the implementation of this announcement shall be subject to vehicle and vessel tax in accordance with the Vehicle and Vessel Tax Law of the People’s Republic of China, its implementation regulations, and other relevant provisions. [Central Bank: To Conduct 1,000 Billion Yuan Outright Reverse Repo on July 6 with 3-Month Term] To keep banking system liquidity ample, on July 6, 2026, the People's Bank of China will conduct 1,000 billion yuan of outright reverse repo operations through fixed quantity, rate tender, and multiple price bidding, with a term of 3 months (91 days). The maturity date is October 5, 2026 (postponed in case of holidays). (Jinshi Data APP) On the dollar front: The overnight US dollar index edged up 0.03% to 100.91. For the week, the US dollar index fell, dropping 0.44% for the week, the largest weekly decline since mid-April. The reason was a significant cooling in the US June employment data, which led the market to lower short-term Fed rate hike expectations, causing the dollar index to fall this week. Against a weaker dollar, the euro rose to $1.1440, up about 0.5% on the week; sterling rose to $1.3352, up about 1.1% on the week, its best performance in nearly three months. The yen rebounded from near a 40-year low, with USD/JPY briefly pulling back to around 161 but remaining at high levels. Japan continued to release signals of foreign exchange intervention, with both finance and cabinet officials stating they are closely monitoring the market and maintaining readiness to intervene. Analysts pointed out that the dollar's trend has been notably influenced by employment data and interest rate expectations. If further economic data continues to weaken, the dollar could still face further pressure, but whether the yen can sustain its rebound still depends on the US-Japan interest rate differential and Japanese policy actions. (Jinshi Data APP) Fed mouthpiece Nick Timiraos said: Trump stated that he believes Fed Chairman Walsh is on the dovish side within the FOMC. The previous day, White House National Economic Council Director Hassett made similar remarks. A week earlier, Treasury Secretary Bessent expressed hope that the Fed would keep an "open attitude" toward inflation and predicted the Fed would ease policy this year. A new era of "forward guidance"... (Jinshi Data APP) BNP Paribas Chief Economist Isabelle Mateos y Lago said: "If the July non-farm payrolls are very strong, close to or above 130,000, then I think the July meeting will be full of suspense. The uncertainty may not be that high now, but in my view, the case for a Fed rate hike still stands." Before the start of the July 4 holiday, short-term interest rate futures markets priced in about a 20% chance of a Fed rate hike at the July 29 meeting, down from 33% before the non-farm payrolls report. The market still expects the US Fed to raise interest rates by 25 basis points this year, but the earliest hike would be in December. On the European Central Bank, Lagarde said: “The baseline expectation remains another rate hike in September. However, it is notable that Governing Council members speaking at the Sintra conference did not rule out the possibility of not implementing this additional hike.” She warned that the normalization of energy supplies could take half a year or longer to take effect, and eurozone inflation could accelerate again. Even so, she sees no pressures on consumer prices beyond energy-affected areas. Allianz Chief Economist Ludovic Subran said: “US non-farm payrolls data is actually weak, but I still think inflation will peak above 3.7%, and AI, fiscal stimulus, and the energy sector are still supporting economic growth. The US Fed may have to raise rates in September. I think this is the real divergence between Europe and the US.” Subran believes that the ECB will not act again after last month's rate hike. “That was an insurance hike, but from the current data, it seems to have passed,” he said, “the traumatic effects of the (Iran) war will take time to manifest, and the economy is still bearing the costs of the war, but the situation is much better now than a few weeks ago.” (Jin10 Data APP) Other currencies: ECB Governing Council member Muller said that the ECB is in a favorable position after last month's rate hike as falling oil prices ease price pressures in the eurozone. Muller said that while it is too early to predict the next two meetings in July and September, officials made clear that “we are not entering a new rate-hiking cycle.” Muller said: “For now, we are in a favorable position. The balance of risks is also at a reasonable level.” Muller added: “Falling oil prices will ease services inflation pressure,” and “we are not yet seeing second-round effects.” (Jin10 Data APP) On the macro front: Next week will see the release of Switzerland's June seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, the Eurozone July Sentix Investor Confidence Index, the Eurozone May PPI m/m, the Eurozone May retail sales m/m, the US June S&P Global Services PMI final, the US June ISM non-manufacturing PMI, the US June Global Supply Chain Pressure Index, Germany's May seasonally adjusted industrial output m/m, the UK June Halifax seasonally adjusted house price index m/m, France's May trade balance, the US ADP employment change for the week ending June 20, the US May trade balance, China's June foreign exchange reserves, Japan's May trade balance, the New Zealand RBNZ interest rate decision due July 8, the US May wholesale sales m/m, China's June CPI y/y, China's June PPI y/y, Germany's May seasonally adjusted trade balance, the US initial jobless claims for the week ending July 4, the US June existing home sales annualized, Germany's June CPI m/m final, France's June CPI m/m final, Switzerland's June consumer confidence index, Canada's June employment change, China's June M2 money supply y/y, among other data releases. In addition, next week attention should also be paid to: 900 billion yuan in outright reverse repos maturing today; speeches by US Fed Governor Waller, ECB Executive Board member Schnabel, ECB Governing Council member Wunsch, and Riksbank Deputy Governor Seim; Turkey hosting the NATO summit through July 8; the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's interest rate decision; RBNZ Governor Bremann's monetary policy press conference; the US Fed's release of its monetary policy meeting minutes; the ECB's release of its June monetary policy meeting minutes; remarks by FOMC permanent voting member and New York Fed President Williams; and remarks by 2026 FOMC voting member and Dallas Fed President Logan. Crude oil: Overnight, both oil futures edged up, with WTI up 0.13% and Brent up 0.19%. On a weekly basis: WTI futures posted a fourth consecutive weekly decline, down 0.65% for the week; Brent futures also fell for a fourth straight week, down 0.91%. The crude oil market was relatively stable, with Brent crude consolidating near $72 per barrel as the market weighed the supply outlook in the Strait of Hormuz and progress in US-Iran negotiations. (Wall Street CN) Data from the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) show that in the week ended June 30, speculators in Brent crude futures cut their net long positions by 34,704 lots to 55,634 lots. Speculators in diesel futures reduced their net long positions by 2,664 lots to 57,852 lots. (Jin10 Data) Data showed that oil exports from the Gulf region in June increased by more than 3 million barrels per day (b/d) from May, surpassing 10 million b/d, but remained 40% below pre-war levels. The UAE led the recovery in the oil market, allowing millions of barrels of crude stranded in the Gulf to reach international markets, thereby enabling producers to raise output and bring prices down to pre-war levels. According to Kpler, combined exports of crude and condensate from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, Iraq and Iran jumped by more than 3.5 million b/d from May to 10.07 million b/d. Another freight analytics firm, Vortexa, estimated that oil shipments in June were 10.2 million b/d, up from 7 million b/d in May but still well below 16.5 million b/d a year earlier. Based on data from Kpler, Vortexa and LSEG, UAE crude exports hit a record 3.7 to 3.8 million b/d in June, more than 1 million b/d above May's levels. (Jin10 Data) In addition, three sources said that Venezuela's largest refinery, the 645,000 b/d Amuay refinery, resumed operations on Friday after a power outage and is currently processing about 140,000 b/d of crude oil, with the fluid catalytic cracking unit (FCC) also back online. Following two earthquakes last week that caused heavy casualties, multiple refineries in Venezuela were affected by power outages. Sources also said that the El Palito refinery, with a daily processing capacity of 146,000 barrels, has had power restored, but staff have not yet been able to restart the production units. (Jinshi Data APP) A Reuters survey showed that OPEC’s crude oil production rebounded sharply in June, up about 3.3 million barrels per day MoM to 19.43 million barrels per day, a clear rebound from May’s more-than-two-decade low, but still well below quota levels. The recovery in output mainly came from Gulf countries restoring supply, with Kuwait posting the largest increase; Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq also raised output in tandem. Nigeria and Libya likewise made small increases. The UAE exited OPEC on May 1 and is no longer included in the statistics. The report noted that the earlier Iran war and the effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz had disrupted supply; the US subsequently lifted restrictions on vessels at Iranian ports, helping some output recover. Although OPEC+ had planned to increase production in June, the plan was not fully implemented due to the war. Overall, global crude oil supply was being repaired, but had not yet returned to normal levels. (Jinshi Data APP) Recommended Reading:

The market share of Chinese passenger vehicles in Europe has surpassed Japan's for the first time. The latest statistics from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association show that in May, five Chinese automakers sold a total of 138,400 units in 31 European countries, up 65% YoY. Over the same period, six Japanese automakers' sales totaled 130,400 units, down 3% YoY.

In June, global scrap tungsten markets diverged. India followed China's tungsten price rally, with active trading and higher prices in mid-June before cooling as China softened. Europe saw low-level consolidation due to high speculative inventories, but prices began to edge up in late June as stocks cleared. China's tungsten market experienced a sharp rebound followed by a pullback, and is expected to consolidate in the near term, while medium-to-long-term fundamentals remain solid.

Since the start of the year, growth in the European solar market has slowed markedly. SMM expects total new solar installations in the European market to fall to around 68.5GW in 2026, a year on year decline of about 2 percent. Alongside softening demand, multiple EU level supply chain restriction policies continue to advance, including the Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA), the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), and restrictive measures targeting inverters from so called high risk countries.

[SMM Analysis: Surging Demand in H1 2026 Drives Industry Expansion, Anode Volume and Price Both Rise, Welcoming Recovery Opportunities] SMM July 3: In H1 2026, a surge in downstream demand drove steady improvement in the anode industry’s prosperity, significantly releasing overall market vitality.

This week (6.26-7.2), the enamelled wire industry's operating rate rose by 1.4 percentage points WoW, in line with earlier expectations. On one hand, the pullback in copper prices last week led to an uptick in order taking, prompting enterprises to raise production schedules accordingly. On the other hand, some enamelled wire enterprises supporting air conditioner production benefited from the European air conditioner buying spree, achieving a phased modest increase in orders. However, enterprises generally reported that the sustainability of this increase was weak and could not reverse the off-season trend in the home appliance industry, with overall demand remaining sluggish.

In yesterday's [SMM Analysis] EU Steel Tariff Wall Doubles to 50%: Reconstructing the New Quota System & In-Depth Analysis of 1A HRC, SMM deeply analyzed the brutal allocation logic of the EU's new 18.35 million tonnes quota. When the "50% tariff wall" and the "melting and pouring" rules completely block traditional tax-free export paths, the global steel supply chain is undergoing a forced reshuffle. Today, we shift our perspective to the ripple effects and macro-level forecasts of this storm.

[SMM zinc morning comment] Overnight, the most-traded SHFE zinc 2608 contract opened at 24,130 yuan/mt. At the beginning of the session, bears cut positions, causing the price to consolidate and strengthen, touching a high of 24,250 yuan/mt. Then, bulls cut positions, prompting SHFE zinc to pull back to a low of 24,105 yuan/mt. Subsequently, bulls added positions, lifting SHFE zinc gradually above the daily average price line. It finally settled higher at 24,210 yuan/mt, up 80 yuan/mt or 0.33%.

[SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Non-farm payrolls data underperformed expectations, supporting LME zinc's rebound from lows] Overnight, LME zinc opened at $3,487.5/mt. In early trading, prices moved sideways around the daily average, hitting a high of $3,503.5/mt; subsequently, zinc prices gradually pulled back and dipped to a low of $3,432.5/mt; entering the European trading session, prices consolidated and recovered, with the center gradually rising back above the daily average line; in the final session, prices edged down again and finally closed at $3,472.5/mt, down $19.5/mt, a decline of 0.56%.

SMM July 3 News: Metals Market: Overnight, base metals on both domestic and overseas markets showed mixed performance. SHFE lead led the gains with a 0.19% increase, SHFE copper rose 0.12%, LME lead rose 0.11%, and SHFE aluminum rose 0.09%. LME tin led the losses with a 0.91% drop, SHFE tin fell 0.85%, and declines in other metals were relatively small. The most-traded alumina contract fell 1.73%, while cast aluminum rose 0.67%. In the ferrous metals sector overnight, iron ore led the losses with a 1.34% drop, while rebar and HRC fell around 0.4%. As for coking coal and coke, coking coal rose 1.07%, and coke rose 1.15%. In precious metals overnight, all rose. COMEX gold rose 1.3%, and COMEX silver rose 1.54%. On the domestic market, SHFE gold rose 1.18%, and SHFE silver rose 1.53%. As of 6:38 am on July 3, overnight closing prices: Macro Front China: [National Energy Administration: Vigorously Promote the Exploration and Development of Deep Coalbed Methane] On July 1, the National Energy Administration held a special meeting on deep coalbed methane exploration and development in Beijing. The meeting pointed out that the core task is to ensure national energy security, vigorously promote the exploration and development of deep coalbed methane, and continuously consolidate the foundation of energy supply. The meeting emphasized the implementation of relevant plans. It called for the issuance and implementation of the "15th Five-Year Plan" for coalbed methane (coal mine gas) development and utilization, as well as action plans for increasing reserves and production in key regions, with tasks detailed to each enterprise and each coalbed methane block, increasing investment in exploration and development, and accelerating the construction of key projects. (National Energy Administration) [Liu Gang of the NDRC Led a Team to Conduct Work Research at Xiaomi Group] Liu Gang, Deputy Director of the Price Monitoring Center of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), led a team to conduct work research at Xiaomi Group. The research covered the price trends of NEVs and mobile phones, sought to understand the main issues facing the industry, and solicited opinions and suggestions on standardizing the automotive industry’s practices and promoting orderly competition. (NDRC Price Monitoring Center) US Dollar: As of the overnight close, the US dollar index fell 0.54% to 100.86. The US economy added 57,000 nonfarm payrolls in June, below Wall Street expectations. After three consecutive months of stronger-than-expected employment growth, the slowdown in June hiring prompted the market to lower expectations for further Fed rate hikes. Data released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics on Thursday showed that the 129,000 jobs added in June, revised down from May, represented a sharp decline, and was also below the 115,000 forecast by economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The report marked a significant cooling in the labour market following three months of better-than-expected job gains. While job growth decelerated, it remained well above the 2025 target of 10,000 new jobs per month on average. The unemployment rate edged down to 4.2% from 4.3% in May. The US dollar weakened as investors scaled back bets on further Fed rate hikes. Futures traders now expect the Fed to raise rates in December. Previously, the market had anticipated a rate hike in October. (Jin10 Data APP) A CICC research report stated that the US added 57,000 nonfarm payrolls in June, below market expectations, indicating that the acceleration in job growth has cooled. After downward revisions to previous months, the average job gains over the past three months still reached 111,000, suggesting that the labour market remains expansionary. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell to 4.2%, and the labour force participation rate continued to decline, reflecting steady labour demand alongside a shrinking labour supply, with overall unemployment pressure relatively low. We believe this data gives the Fed time to wait and watch, thus we maintain the view that there will be neither a rate hike nor a rate cut this year. In the medium term, the improvement in US employment this year is driven more by AI investment-led economic cycle repair rather than short-term factors like the World Cup. This means that if aggregate demand continues to expand under the boost of AI, the possibility of the Fed resuming rate hikes next year cannot be ruled out. (Jin10 Data APP) According to the CME FedWatch Tool: The probability that the Fed keeps interest rates unchanged in July is 82.4%, while the probability of a cumulative 25-basis-point rate hike is 17.6%. For the September meeting, the probability of rates staying unchanged is 46.8%, the probability of a cumulative 25-bp hike is 45.6%, and the probability of a cumulative 50-bp hike is 7.6%. (Jin10 Data APP) On the Macro Front: Today, data including China's June RatingDog Services PMI, French May industrial production month-on-month, the final June Services PMIs for France, Germany, the Eurozone, and the UK will be released. In addition, China will open a new round of price adjustment window for domestic refined oil products. ECB President Christine Lagarde will participate in an economic forum, and BOE Governor Andrew Bailey will speak on the coordination of fiscal and monetary policies. Notably, on July 3, US markets—NYSE will be closed for the US Independence Day holiday. CME will close trading in precious metals, energy, foreign exchange, US Treasury, and stock index futures contracts early at 01:00 Beijing time on July 4 for the Independence Day holiday. ICE will close Brent crude oil futures trading early at 01:30 Beijing time on July 4 for the Independence Day holiday. Crude Oil: Overnight, both oil benchmarks fell, with WTI crude down 0.17% and Brent crude down 0.01%, as buyers sought to secure supply ahead of the US Independence Day long weekend. Since Saudi Arabia resumed loading operations in the Persian Gulf, its crude oil exports have surged to roughly pre-war levels. This further indicates that regional producers' supply is recovering following the temporary peace agreement between the US and Iran. Bloomberg-compiled tanker tracking data showed that Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter, averaged 6.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude exports in the six days through Wednesday. That export level is comparable to the 2025 average and has reached nearly 90% of the pre-war February level, when Saudi and its Gulf neighbours ramped up supply. (from Wallstreetcn APP) Since Saudi Arabia resumed tanker loading and unloading in the Persian Gulf, its crude oil exports have surged to near pre-war levels, further evidence that regional oil supply is recovering after the US-Iran temporary peace agreement. Bloomberg-compiled tanker tracking data showed that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil exporter, shipped an average of 6.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude in the six days through Wednesday. That shipping volume is roughly on par with the 2025 average and has reached nearly 90% of the February level. In February, before the Iran war broke out, Saudi Arabia and its Gulf neighbours had significantly increased oil supply. (Jin10 Data APP)