1.
According to the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), on September 18, the China Iron and Steel Association's Iron Ore Working Committee held an iron ore working meeting in Beijing to analyze the current iron ore market situation, discuss key upcoming tasks, and make arrangements for the upcoming launch of the Beijing Iron Ore Trading Center's imported iron ore port spot price index. The meeting was attended by iron ore procurement managers from domestic steel producers and iron ore traders.
2.
As of the week ending September 18, rebar production declined for three consecutive weeks, factory inventories decreased for two consecutive weeks, apparent demand turned from declining to increasing, and social inventories turned from increasing to decreasing. Rebar production reached 2.0645 million tons, a decrease of 54,800 tons (2.59%) from the previous week; apparent demand for rebar reached 2.1003 million tons, an increase of 119,600 tons (6.04%) from the previous week.
3.
A commodity research report shows that Argentina's wheat production forecast for 2025/26 remains unchanged at 19.8 million tons, with an estimated range of 18.6-21 million tons. In early September, drought conditions in the eastern Pampas brought a brief reprieve from the moist soil, and crop growth is in full swing, but another round of rain may be imminent.
4.
According to the China Cotton Association, the national cotton planting area will reach 44.823 million mu in 2025, a year-on-year increase of 1.8%. Due to better-than-average weather and farmers' effective water and fertilizer management, cotton is growing well, with Xinjiang's yield per unit area and total output reaching new record highs. The national total output is projected to be 7.216 million tons, an 8.3% year-on-year increase, 321,000 tons higher than the previous period, and the highest level since 2013.
5.
This week, Mysteel's Coal and Coke Division surveyed the profitability of 30 independent coking plants nationwide. The national average profit per ton of coke was -17 yuan/ton. Shanxi's average profit for quasi-first-grade coke was -12 yuan/ton, Shandong's average profit for quasi-first-grade coke was 34 yuan/ton, Inner Mongolia's average profit for second-grade coke was -70 yuan/ton, and Hebei's average profit for quasi-first-grade coke was 13 yuan/ton. 6.
The Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, together with the National Development and Reform Commission, held a symposium with companies on pig production capacity regulation on the 16th to analyze and discuss the implementation of capacity control measures. Representatives from participating companies revealed that leading companies were explicitly required to take the lead in controlling production capacity, including reducing the number of sows, reducing the number of pigs slaughtered, and controlling the weight of pigs slaughtered to around 120 kilograms.
7.
According to the first forecast for the 2025/2026 crop year released by the National Commodity Supply Company (Conab), a subsidiary of the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Brazil's total soybean production in 2025/26 is expected to reach 177.67 million tons, a 3.6% increase from the previous year.
8.
The Buenos Aires Grain Exchange in Argentina stated in its weekly report on Thursday that corn planting in the country's main agricultural production areas advanced rapidly this week ahead of the arrival of weekend storms. The expected storms this weekend are expected to halt local crop planting. The exchange projects Argentina's corn crop area to reach 7.8 million hectares (19.3 million acres) in 2025/26, marking the country's second-highest corn planting area.
9.
According to the latest data from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as of September 12, there were 50,420 unpriced sell orders for U.S. cotton on-call, an increase of 18 lots from the previous month; there were 114,730 unpriced buy orders, an increase of 3,962 lots from the previous month.
10.
According to Longzhong Information, as of September 18, total inventory at domestic soda ash manufacturers was 1.7556 million tons, a decrease of 41,900 tons, or 2.33%, from the previous Thursday. Of this total, light soda ash accounted for 749,500 tons, a decrease of 13,500 tons from the previous month, and heavy soda ash accounted for 1.0061 million tons, a decrease of 28,400 tons from the previous month. Last year's inventory was 1.3988 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 356,800 tons, or 25.51%. 11.
Data from the General Administration of Customs showed that China's urea exports in August reached 800,000 tons, a significant year-on-year increase. Cumulative urea exports from January to August reached 1.44 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 492.3%. China's rubber tire exports in August reached 870,000 tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.6%. Cumulative exports from January to August reached 6.5 million tons, a year-on-year increase of 5.1%.
12.
As of Thursday, China's total installed capacity of metallurgical-grade alumina reached 110.32 million tons/year, with a total operating capacity of 92.33 million tons/year. The weekly operating rate for alumina production increased by 0.92 percentage points from the previous week to 83.69%. This was primarily due to the resumption of production at alumina mills that had previously undergone roaster maintenance or reduced loads, resulting in an increase in operating capacity during the period.
