Driven by a strong rally in tin prices, related concept stocks showed active performance. Guangxi Huaxi Nonferrous Metal Co.,Ltd. surged more than 7%, Xingye Silver Tin gained over 5%, and Yunnan Tin Co., Ltd. rose more than 3%. Zijin Mining Group also traded in positive territory. Among popular ETFs, Huabao's Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876), the largest by scale tracking the same underlying index, saw its intraday price increase nearly 1.5% in early trading. As of the time of writing, it received a real-time net subscription of 18 million units, reflecting capital's optimism towards the nonferrous metals sector's outlook and active positioning.
On the evening of May 6, the main LME tin contract opened higher and extended gains, closing up 9.27%, hitting a two-month high and accumulating a 33.96% increase since the start of the year. Shanghai tin futures also showed significant gains during the night session, rising as much as 5.22% intraday and closing up 5.01%.
Regarding market news, the progress of restarting tin mines in Myanmar's Wa State has continued to fall short of expectations. In the first quarter, mining areas were busy with pumping and drainage work following an earthquake, and mining operations were largely stalled. At the end of April, an explosion at a local explosives factory led to a complete suspension of operations for rectification, further delaying the restart progress for a second time. Affected by delays in mine explosives approvals until December 2025, the restart level of the Manxiang tin mine is only 40%-50% of pre-ban levels. May will usher in the rainy season, which will limit open-pit mining and transportation.
Furthermore, Indonesia is the world's largest exporter of refined tin. In January 2026, the chairman of the Indonesian Tin Exporters Association publicly stated that the association expects the tin mining production quota for 2026 to be set at approximately 60,000 tons, far below market expectations.
It is understood that tin has stable chemical properties, barely reacting with air at room temperature and resisting corrosion from weak acids and alkalis, enabling it to form various compounds with distinct characteristics. It is non-toxic and internationally recognized as a "green metal." Based on these properties, tin is widely used in industries such as metallurgy, electronics, packaging, chemicals, machinery, automotive, aerospace, and defense. Its primary applications are in solder (mainly electronic solder), tinplate, and tin chemicals, with solder accounting for over 50% of total tin consumption.
The rapid growth of the optical module industry is bringing new incremental demand for tin. According to a Huaxi Securities research report, as optical module transmission rates increase, requirements for soldering processes are significantly enhanced, and the solder paste industry is expected to see both volume and price increases. As optical module speeds evolve from 10G to 400G/800G, the number of solder points on PCBA boards grows rapidly. Higher-grade solder paste is more expensive, and high-speed optical modules require increased use of such premium pastes.
CITIC Futures believes that strong performance in the AI sector is driving a significant rise in tin prices. Over 50% of downstream tin demand comes from the solder sector, a large portion of which is contributed by semiconductors. Strengthening expectations for the AI industry are boosting demand expectations for tin. It is anticipated that support for tin prices at the bottom remains, and in the short term, optimistic market sentiment is driving prices significantly higher.
Looking at the outlook for the nonferrous metals sector, Orient Securities believes that short-term fluctuations do not alter the medium to long-term positive trend. Before the fundamental issue of US long-term debt is resolved, the long-term bull market for precious metals is not over. Incremental demand driven by "de-globalization," coupled with the trend of shrinking mineral supply, also provides mid-term fundamental support for price increases in industrial metals and strategic metals.
Huabao's Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) and its feeder fund (Class A: 017140, Class C: 017141) comprehensively cover industries such as copper, aluminum, gold, rare earths, and lithium, encompassing different cycles for precious metals, strategic metals, and industrial metals. Full-category coverage allows for better capture of the sector's beta movements. Additionally, this ETF is a margin trading security, making it an efficient tool for one-click exposure to the nonferrous metals sector.
As of the end of April, Huabao's Nonferrous Metals ETF (159876) had a latest size of 1.865 billion yuan, making it the largest ETF by scale among the three ETF products tracking the same underlying index in the market.
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