SHFE base metals rangebound; zinc 0utperforms
Published by: Irene Chuang
6 Aug 2026 @ 03:54 UTC
Full article link: https://dashboard.fastmarkets.com/launch?url=/a/7c221b24-b2a8-4598-83f8-7c42190555bd
Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) were mostly higher within a narrow range during early trading on Thursday August 6, with zinc posting the largest gain.
These were the prices of the most-traded Shanghai Futures Exchange base metals contracts at 10:30am Shanghai time on Thursday August 6, compared with Wednesday's 3pm close:
- Copper (September 2026): 107,880 yuan ($15,977.60), up by 0.50%
- Aluminium (September 2026): 23,885 yuan, up by 0.42%
- Zinc (September 2026): 25,690 yuan, up by 1.04%
- Lead (September 2026): 15,675 yuan, down by 0.51%
- Nickel (September 2026): 131,010 yuan, up by 0.16%
- Tin (September 2026): 435,130 yuan, up by 0.25%
(Prices inclusive of 13% value-added tax)
The most-traded zinc contract outperformed the complex on Thursday, rising by 1.04% to 25,690 yuan ($3,804) per tonne.
The increase was in line with gains on the London Metal Exchange (LME), where the three-month zinc contract closed at $3,729 per tonne on Wednesday, up by 1.51% from Tuesday's close.
"Ongoing supporting factors are the energy crisis in Peru and the fires at the Cajamarquilla (Peru), Ust-Kamenogorsk (Kazakhstan) and Seokpo (South Korea) smelters," Fastmarkets analyst William Adams said.
Meanwhile, concentrate shortages, negative treatment charges and capped sulfuric acid prices in China have squeezed smelter margins, increasing the likelihood of maintenance outages and constraining refined zinc production, Fastmarkets analysts said.
Data from the International Lead and Zinc Study Group (ILZSG) showed that global mine supply fell by 0.9% year on year in January-May.
Concentrate availability remained constrained relative to expanding smelting capacity, according to Fastmarkets analyses.
"The balance of risks for zinc remains skewed toward supply-side support in the short term, particularly if negative treatment charges force additional smelter maintenance or if energy and logistics disruptions intensify " Adams added