Price Differentiation, Enterprise Strategic Upgrading, And Intelligent Manufacturing Transformation Are All Progressing Simultaneously.

Recently, the metal industry has shown a multi-dimensional development trend, with significant changes in prices, enterprise layout, and technological innovation.
The trend of metal prices is differentiated: As of August 15, 2025, the average price of lithium carbonate (99.5% battery grade, domestic production) soared by 15.91%, reaching 82,700 yuan per ton, and the prices of lithium iron phosphate and other lithium battery materials also rose. During the same period, COMEX silver rose by 2.47%, but the average price of electrolytic cobalt was 263,500 yuan per ton, down 2.04% compared to the previous period. The prices of rare earths also showed differentiation, with the closing price of praseodymium and neodymium oxide at 558,000 yuan per ton, an increase of 4.99%, while the prices of oxide dysprosium and terbium declined.
The strategic layout of enterprises has accelerated: The 2025 semi-annual report of Shengda Resources shows that its revenue from non-ferrous metal mining and processing reached 640 million yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 44.24% and a gross profit margin of 62.64%. The company has controlled multiple mining subsidiaries, has rich resources reserves, and Dongsheng Mining's progress in waiting for the construction of the production mine is in line with expectations. Zijin Mining has established Fujian Zijin Rare and Precious Metals Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 5 billion yuan, further extending the industrial chain and strengthening its layout in the field of rare and precious metals.
Intelligent manufacturing has become a new engine of the industry: On August 9, 2025, the National Intelligent Manufacturing and Digital Transformation Promotion Conference for the Nonferrous Metals Industry was held in Jinchang. The 5G smart mine project of Jinchuan Group was selected as a typical case of "5G + Industrial Internet" in the country. By introducing advanced technologies, it achieved intelligent control of mining, transportation, and beneficiation processes, improving production efficiency and resource utilization.
Policy influence continues to intensify: Since August 1, the United States imposed a 50% tariff on semi-finished copper and copper-intensive derivative products, leading to increased volatility in the global copper market and high copper inventories in the United States. As the global copper processing and consumption center, China's copper processing projects in the first half of the year "over-ordered" demand, coupled with the tariff policy, the market is concerned about the downward trend of copper prices. However, in the long term, the tight supply of copper mines has not changed, and copper prices are still supported by the supply side.
The supply and demand of industrial metals are tight: Chile, the world's largest copper mine supplier, lowered its expected growth rate of copper production in 2025 to 1.5%, and copper production in Zambia in the second quarter declined. Although it is currently in the copper demand off-season, in the long term, the green energy transition, electrification, and artificial intelligence will greatly boost copper demand. In the aluminum market, although the domestic electrolytic aluminum market is in the stage of accumulation and inventory in the off-season, it is expected that as the downstream emerges from the off-season, the inventory will stop at the historical同期 low level, and the supply and demand of electrolytic aluminum will maintain a tight balance in the second half of the year.