1. According to CCTV News, on March 3rd local time, the Iranian government announced its decision to prioritize the supply of basic, critical, and essential goods needed by the people, temporarily banning all food and agricultural exports until further notice.
2. Due to the Iranian attack forcing the shutdown of Qatar's main liquefied natural gas plant, Qatar Energy has halted production of some chemical products and metals. In a statement on Tuesday, the company said it would stop production of downstream products including urea, polymers, methanol, and aluminum.
3. According to the China Iron and Steel Association, in late February, social inventories of five major steel products in 21 cities totaled 10.88 million tons, an increase of 1.35 million tons, or 14.2%, month-on-month, marking a continuous rise in inventories; an increase of 3.67 million tons, or 50.9%, compared to the beginning of the year; and a decrease of 150,000 tons, or 1.4%, compared to the same period last year.
4. A Reuters survey indicates that Malaysian palm oil ending stocks are expected to fall to 2.63 million tons in February, a decrease of 6.52% month-on-month, as seasonal production declines offset the impact of slower exports. This would be the lowest inventory level since November last year. 5. Palm oil exports in February totaled 1.18 million tons, a sharp decrease of 20.8% month-on-month.
6. Five industry traders indicated that India's palm oil imports in February rose 10.1% month-on-month to 844,000 tons, hitting a six-month high. Soybean oil imports in India rose 8.7% month-on-month to 303,000 tons in February.
7. Iraqi oil officials stated that due to easing tensions in the Strait of Hormuz leading to full storage facilities from tanker arrivals, crude oil production at Iraq's Rumaila oil field has been reduced. On Tuesday, the field's daily output was cut by 700,000 barrels.
8. Fitch's research arm, BMI, stated that in a scenario where the Middle East conflict continues for two to three weeks, aluminum prices are likely to remain around $3,300 per ton in the coming weeks.
9. The Indonesian Nickel Mining Association stated that the government has allocated approximately 260 million metric tons of nickel ore production quotas for 2026. Indonesian energy ministry officials said on Tuesday that Indonesia's nickel ore production quota for 2026 has been set at 260 million to 270 million metric tons.
