1. According to the Shanghai Shipping Exchange, as of December 22, 2025, the Shanghai Export Container Freight Index (European route) was 1589.20 points, up 5.2% compared to the previous period.
2. According to Xinhua News Agency, six special working groups led by the National Mine Safety Administration, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the State Administration for Market Regulation, and the National Energy Administration recently conducted two rounds of investigations in 12 key regions across the country, focusing on the investigation, sealing, and rectification of abandoned mine shafts and the crackdown on illegal mining of mineral resources.
3. According to Mysteel, on December 22, major steel mills in Shandong Province lowered their coke purchase prices by 50 yuan/ton for wet-quenched coke and 55 yuan/ton for dry-quenched coke; some steel mills in Shandong Province also lowered their coke purchase prices (tamped coke) by 55 yuan/ton; steel mills in Hebei Province lowered their coke purchase prices by 50/55 yuan/ton, all effective from 00:00 on December 22, 2025. 4. According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, for the week ending December 18, 2025, U.S. soybean export inspections totaled 870,199 tons, in line with market expectations of 800,000-1,000,000 tons. The previous week's figure was revised to 810,110 tons, with an initial estimate of 795,661 tons. U.S. shipments to China (mainland) totaled 386,010 tons of soybeans, compared to 202,043 tons the previous week. Soybean export inspections to China accounted for 44.36% of total export inspections that week, compared to 25.39% the previous week.
5. Data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) shows that private exporters reported sales of 396,000 tons of soybeans to China; of these, 330,000 tons will be delivered in the 2025/2026 marketing year, and the remaining 66,000 tons will be delivered in the 2026/2027 marketing year.
6. According to AmSpec, an independent inspection agency in Malaysia, Malaysia's palm oil exports from December 1st to 20th totaled 821,442 tons, a decrease of 0.87% compared to 828,680 tons exported during the same period last month.
7. Data from the Southern Peninsula Palm Oil Pressors Association (SPPOMA) shows that from December 1st to 20th, 2025, Malaysian palm oil yield per hectare decreased by 6.26% compared to the same period last month, oil extraction rate decreased by 0.17%, and production decreased by 7.15%.
8. According to CONAB, the national commodity supply company under the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, as of December 20th, Brazil's soybean planting rate was 97.6%, compared to 94.1% last week, 97.8% at the same time last year, and a five-year average of 94.9%.
9. Data from Longzhong Information shows that as of December 22nd, 2025, the total inventory of domestic soda ash manufacturers this week was 1.5004 million tons, an increase of 0.11 million tons from last Thursday, a rise of 0.07%. Of these, light soda ash totaled 729,200 tons, an increase of 1,600 tons month-on-month, while heavy soda ash totaled 771,200 tons, a decrease of 500 tons month-on-month.
10. The Guangzhou Futures Exchange announced the addition of designated delivery warehouses for lithium carbonate and polysilicon futures, an increase in the maximum standard warehouse receipt volume for lithium carbonate delivery warehouses, an increase in the maximum standard warehouse receipt volume for polysilicon futures designated delivery warehouses, and the addition of designated quality inspection agencies for polysilicon futures. The existing designated delivery warehouses for lithium carbonate futures and industrial silicon futures have been cancelled, as have the designated delivery warehouses and quality inspection agencies for industrial silicon futures.
11. According to Mysteel research, a large mine in Guinea has released its first-quarter long-term contract price quotes. Based on the latest stable oil prices, the CIF price after converting ocean freight to dry tonnes is approximately US$66.5/dry tonnes, a decrease of approximately US$5/dry tonnes compared to the previous quarter.
