1. According to data from the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA), the steel inventory of key steel enterprises was 14.71 million tons, a decrease of 1.42 million tons (8.8%) compared to the previous ten-day period; an increase of 570,000 tons (4.0%) compared to the beginning of the year; an increase of 570,000 tons (4.0%) compared to the same ten-day period last month; a decrease of 640,000 tons (4.2%) compared to the same ten-day period last year; and an increase of 2.51 million tons (20.6%) compared to the same ten-day period the year before last.
2. According to Mysteel, as of the week ending February 5th, rebar production reversed its upward trend, with mill inventories increasing for the third consecutive week, social inventories increasing for the fifth consecutive week, and apparent demand declining for the third consecutive week. Rebar production was 1.9168 million tons, a decrease of 81,500 tons (4.08%) compared to the previous week; rebar social inventories were 3.6592 million tons, an increase of 395,200 tons (12.11%) compared to the previous week; and apparent demand for rebar was 1.4764 million tons, a decrease of 287,600 tons (16.3%) compared to the previous week.
3. According to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, net export sales of U.S. soybeans for the 2025/2026 marketing year were 437,000 tons, compared to 819,000 tons the previous week; net export sales of U.S. corn for the 2025/2026 marketing year were 1,041,000 tons, compared to 1,649,000 tons the previous week.
4. Two glass production lines increased their operating rates this week. As of February 5th, the float glass industry's operating rate was 71.28%, a decrease of 0.68 percentage points from the previous week; the capacity utilization rate decreased by 0.6 percentage points to 75.09%, resulting in a national daily float glass output of 149,800 tons, a decrease of 0.79% from the 29th. Total float glass output this week was 1,055,800 tons, a decrease of 0.11% week-on-week and a decrease of 3.16% year-on-year.
5. As of February 5th, 2026, the total inventory of domestic soda ash manufacturers this week was 1,581,100 tons, an increase of 20,700 tons from Monday, a rise of 1.33%. Of these, light soda ash production was 83.5 tons, a decrease of 2,500 tons month-on-month, while heavy soda ash production was 746,100 tons, an increase of 23,200 tons month-on-month. Compared to last Thursday, production increased by 36,900 tons, a rise of 2.39%.
6. According to the latest statistics from the China Gold Association, in 2025, my country's gold consumption was 950.096 tons, a year-on-year decrease of 3.57%. Of this, gold jewelry consumption was 363.836 tons, a year-on-year decrease of 31.61%; gold bars and coins consumption was 504.238 tons, a year-on-year increase of 35.14%; and industrial and other gold consumption was 82.022 tons, a year-on-year increase of 2.32%. In 2025, the total increase in holdings of domestic gold ETFs was 133.118 tons, a 149.91% increase compared to the 53.266 tons increase in 2024. By the end of December, domestic gold ETF holdings totaled 247.852 tons.
7. According to Futures Daily, "Zhongcai Futures shorted silver on a large scale before the price crash, with floating profits exceeding 3.6 billion yuan," which has attracted widespread attention. Is this statement true? The aforementioned positions held by Zhongcai Futures are all client-managed positions, meaning the overall positions of Zhongcai Futures' brokerage clients. Therefore, the aforementioned claim in the "short article" that "Zhongcai Futures profited from short selling" is inaccurate.
8. JPMorgan Chase predicts that central bank net gold purchases will reach 800 tons this year, still 70% higher than levels before 2022. Demand from central banks and investors this year is sufficient to eventually push gold prices to $6,300 per ounce by the end of 2026.
9. The CME Group has raised the margin requirement for gold to 9% and for silver to 18%. The new standards will take effect after the market closes on February 6th local time.
