[SMM Lead Morning Meeting Minutes: Bullish and Bearish Factors Coexisted in Domestic and Overseas Markets; Lead Prices Were Expected to Remain Consolidated] US Treasury Secretary Bessent: A 15% global tariff might be implemented this week, pledged to safeguard the Persian Gulf, and hinted that more measures were forthcoming. Recently, lead-acid battery enterprises in the domestic market basically resumed production, and the overall operating rate in March rebounded sharply from February…

SMM, March 5: In early trading, SHFE aluminum 2602 fluctuated upward, with the price center higher than the previous trading day. Affected by the US-Iran conflict, aluminum prices continued to rise. Impacted by high aluminum prices today, buying sentiment declined while selling sentiment increased. The spot-futures price spread was currently relatively strong, and some traders were still purchasing for hedging. Bullish sentiment was strong in the market, and sellers held prices firm. Today’s mainstream transaction prices were from the average price to +10 yuan/mt. Today, the east China market shipments sentiment index was 2.98, up 0.3 MoM; the purchasing sentiment index was 2.96, down 0.23 MoM. Geopolitical conflict affected Aluminum Bahrain’s shipments, intensifying sentiment of financial constraints. Traders in the central China market remained bullish. Although downstream processing enterprises were constrained by weaker-than-expected orders and inventories not yet fully depleted, resulting in relatively weak purchasing sentiment, traders’ purchases boosted overall market transactions, and premiums remained relatively firm. Ultimately, actual transaction prices in the central China market ranged from central China price +10 yuan to central China price -30 yuan, with mainstream transaction prices concentrated at central China price -10 yuan to -20 yuan. Today, the central China market shipments sentiment index was 2.77, up 0.07 MoM; the purchasing sentiment index was 2.4, up 0.08 MoM. Inventory side, aluminum ingot inventory in major consumption areas increased 13,000 mt MoM today. Affected by seasonality, all three regions saw inventory buildup. In the short term, after the Chinese New Year, aluminum ingots continued to see seasonal inventory buildup. Affected by bullish sentiment, premiums are expected to remain on a narrowing trend.

[SMM Lead Morning Brief: Geopolitical Risks Ease, Lead Prices Recover the Previous Day’s Losses] SMM, March 5: Overnight, LME lead opened at $1,937/mt. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East persisted, but the impact of bearish news weakened...

[SMM Lead Morning Update: US Dollar Index Nears 100; LME Lead Falls to a 10-Month Low] SMM News, March 4: Overnight, LME lead opened at $1,967.5/mt. During the Asian session, LME lead traded relatively steadily, consolidating around $1,970/mt for most of the session......

SMM News on March 4: During the day, the most-traded SHFE lead 2604 contract opened at 16,780 yuan/mt. It edged down slightly in early trading, touching an intraday low of 16,740 yuan/mt. After the Lantern Festival, trading activity in the lead spot market increased, providing a slight boost to SHFE lead; it fluctuated upward in the afternoon, and rose to around 16,860 yuan/mt near the close, finally settling at 16,840 yuan/mt, posting a small bullish candlestick, with the % change flat from the previous trading day. After the Lantern Festival holiday, the steady release of smelting capacity and the slow recovery in downstream consumption formed a tug-of-war between sellers and buyers, and lead prices are expected to maintain a fluctuating trend in the short term. Data Source Statement: Except for public information, all other data are processed by SMM based on public information, market communication, and SMM’s internal database models, for reference only and not constituting decision-making advice.

[SMM Lead Morning Meeting Summary: Coexistence of Energy Supply Pressure and Lead Ingot Inventory Buildup May Lead to Continued Price Consolidation] The escalation of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, obstruction of major shipping routes, and expectations for rising transportation costs are anticipated to increase pressure on Europe's energy supply. After the domestic holiday, the lead market has experienced severe inventory buildup...

[SMM Tin Morning Update: SHFE Tin Prices Opened Slightly Higher in the Night Session and Then Consolidated at High Levels; As Prices Rebounded, Spot Cargo Transactions Gradually Cooled]

In the short term, a stronger US dollar weighed on precious metals prices. Silver prices remained in the doldrums today; the spot-futures price spread between TD and the most-traded SHFE silver contract narrowed, and spot premiums still showed signs of further declines. In Shanghai, suppliers of national-standard silver ingots lowered their premiums over TD to quotes of 900-1,100 yuan/kg, but mainstream bulk deals were concentrated at TD+900-1,000 yuan/kg. High-premium quotes saw only small volumes of less than 1 mt, yet trading volume remained moderate. In some regions, cargoes self-picked up from production site at smelters were quoted at premiums of 850-1,000 yuan/kg over TD and were concluded on rigid demand. Quoted prices for silver ingots in the market still varied significantly, with large differences across different deal sizes and brands. After silver prices weakened, downstream buyers feared further declines and purchased cautiously, staying on the sidelines; deals were generally concluded after negotiating and adjusting prices with suppliers, and market trading turned slightly quieter.

LONDON, March 3 (Reuters) - Gold's appeal as it draws support from the widening conflict in the Middle East is expected to ​remain intact even if some investors have favoured the dollar as their preferred safe haven, traders and analysts said.

SMM, March 4: Aluminum ingot: Today, Foshan A00 spot aluminum was affected by the geopolitical situation in Iran, with heightened fluctuations in market sentiment. Discounts edged down slightly before recovering. Mainstream quotations against the front-month contract were -170 yuan/mt, with some cargoes quoted at -180 yuan/mt, down 10-20 yuan/mt WoW from last Friday. Intraday transactions were concentrated at -20~-10 yuan/mt. A major buyer in Foshan swept up cargoes at -10 yuan/mt. Lower-priced cargoes were relatively abundant, and a small number of quotations rebounded to near parity. Downstream purchases were mainly driven by rigid demand, with deliveries to plants at -10 yuan/mt, and overall purchasing sentiment remained sluggish. Aluminum billet: Today, the average processing fee for SMM 6063 aluminum billet (Guangdong) was 180 yuan/mt for Φ90/100, and 130 yuan/mt for Φ120 and above, down 20 yuan/mt from yesterday. Affected by expectations of tightening overseas supply, the base price rose significantly, and aluminum billet processing fees were somewhat under pressure. Meanwhile, downstream post-holiday resumption progressed slowly, and purchases were mainly driven by rigid demand, with buyers pushing for lower prices. If aluminum futures prices continued to rise, suppliers would continue to raise processing fees, while market trading sentiment was relatively average.