SMM

       This week (3.7-3.13), the operating rate of SMM copper wire and cable enterprises was 77.21%, up 4.58 percentage points MoM and 3.65 percentage points YoY, but 1.95 percentage points lower than the expected rate. Overall, new orders for most copper wire and cable enterprises recovered this week, though the market showed divergent trends. On one hand, the rise in copper prices this week encouraged some downstream customers to "rush to buy amid continuous price rise," but as copper prices reached a certain level, the market entered a wait-and-see phase. On the other hand, end-use demand increased MoM, with SMM hearing that both the State Grid and China Southern Power Grid recently placed orders, and engineering construction projects gradually resumed, signaling a recovery in market demand. Some enterprises told SMM that current orders for PV, submarine cables, and high-voltage products are relatively sufficient, while orders for medium- and low-voltage products have grown but remain limited in total volume, with market competition becoming increasingly intense. With copper prices remaining high, copper wire and cable enterprises indicated that this would affect the pace of customer orders. Therefore, SMM expects the operating rate of copper wire and cable enterprises next week (3.14-3.20) to increase by 4.58 percentage points MoM to 82.48%, with the growth rate slowing.