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STMicroelectronics recently announced that it has added its robot product portfolio to the list of reference components compatible with NVIDIA Holoscan Sensor Bridge (HSB) interface, to accelerate the adoption of physical artificial intelligence systems, including humanoid robots, industrial robots, service robots, medical robots, and more. At the same time, STMicroelectronics will also incorporate its high-fidelity NVIDIA Isaac Sim model into the robotics ecosystems of both companies to improve the speed and accuracy of development from simulation to real machine.

The main contract for paper pulp on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose over 3%, closing at 5,192 yuan per ton.

Copper prices plummeted due to negative news, dropping to a low of 91,820 yuan, then rebounding above 95k later. Downstream replenishment increased, and inventories decreased to 540.5k tons, with demand expected to recover. Despite improvements in fundamentals, macroeconomic pressure remains high, and copper prices are expected to fluctuate around 95k, so a wait-and-see approach is recommended.

International oil prices are rising due to Middle East tensions, driving up the prices of plastics used in cables and tightening supply. The copper cable industry currently shows strong order performance in the power sector, but its main products, medium and low voltage cables, consume a large amount of plastic, thereby increasing corporate production costs and compressing profit margins. We will continue to monitor the trend of plastic raw material prices and assess their impact on the operational load of copper cable production. (SMM)

President Trump of the United States previously pressured European countries to join the "Hormuz Alliance" to control the Strait of Hormuz, threatening to stop arms support to Ukraine otherwise. After multiple NATO countries refused, Trump expressed strong dissatisfaction and considered withdrawing the United States from NATO.

The main contract for lithium carbonate at the Guangzhou Futures Exchange turned green, quoted at 145,020 yuan per ton, after having risen by more than 4% earlier.

April 2, 2026, the sales in the apple sales area market for apples are relatively slow, and apple producers in the production areas are not highly motivated to purchase. There are few instances of packaging and shipping from cold storage, mainly relying on customer self-pickup. Fruit farmers' trading activity is limited, and their selling mentality varies. Some urgent-sale fruit farmers are willing to negotiate prices to make deals. The overall price of stored apples remains stable, with some weaker performance in certain average-quality sources. (China Fruit Network)

Spot silver falls below $72 per ounce, down 0.79% intraday.

Today, the Shanghai Metal Exchange #1 electrolytic copper quote is approximately 95,970 yuan/ton, down 890 yuan from the previous day. The Shanghai copper contract fell by 430 yuan. Market sentiment is average, with limited improvement in consumption. Spot circulation is ample, and the premium is under pressure.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps of Iran announced today (March 20) in its latest statement that Iran’s armed forces are on high alert and are eager to deliver a heavy blow to U.S. warships in real combat. In response to the U.S. claim that it “has destroyed the Iranian Navy,” the Revolutionary Guard said this is a lie and added, “If the U.S. is really so confident, why don’t they dare to order an aircraft carrier to enter the Gulf of Oman and the Red Sea?” (CCTV International News)

According to sources, recently, multiple aircraft from the Philippines entered China's Huangyan Island airspace illegally without permission from the Chinese government. The Chinese People's Liberation Army organized naval and air forces to track, monitor, warn, and drive them away in accordance with laws and regulations. (Global Times)

Sichuan Province releases the "Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Service Capacity Doubling Action Plan," aiming to build 2.05 million charging facilities by the end of 2027, reaching 17 million kilowatts of public charging capacity to meet the demand of 4 million electric vehicles, and promote the construction of private charging facilities.

The Hong Kong Hang Seng Index's decline has widened to 1%, and the Hang Seng Tech Index is now down 2.47%.

On March 7th, local time, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi posted on his personal social media account stating that Iran has always emphasized maintaining and continuing friendly relations with regional governments based on good neighborliness and mutual respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity. This does not negate Iran's inherent right to self-defense in the face of military aggression from the United States and Israel. Raisi said, we will unwaveringly defend the country and resist to the end. Iran's defensive actions are only targeted at those source targets and facilities that attack Iran, which we consider legitimate targets. Iran has not attacked friendly neighboring countries. On the contrary, we are striking U.S. military bases and equipment facilities in the region. (CCTV News)

On April 2, 2026, Wang Yi spoke by phone with Bahraini Foreign Minister Zayani to discuss the situation in the Middle East and Gulf security. Both sides stressed that the United Nations Security Council should effectively address the issue of navigation through the strait, and called for the restoration of peace and stability. China is willing to assist in advancing regional reconciliation.

To promote the construction of "Zero Waste" in the industrial sector, the Department of Energy Conservation and Comprehensive Utilization will hold a seminar in 2026 to discuss standards for "Zero Waste Parks" and "Zero Waste Enterprises," emphasizing the importance of waste-free transformation for resource utilization and ecological protection, and will accelerate the development of relevant standards to lead industry practices.

First-tier city real estate markets experienced a "small spring" in the housing market this March.
Data shows that Guangzhou's second-hand residential online signing transactions exceeded 10,000 units, a 141.38% increase month-on-month;
Shenzhen's total transactions of second-hand and first-hand commercial housing reached 11,851 units, a 117.1% increase month-on-month;
Beijing's second-hand residential transactions totaled 19,886 units in March, a 144.63% increase month-on-month, reaching the highest peak in nearly 15 months;
Shanghai's cumulative online signing volume of second-hand homes reached 31.3k units, the highest record in nearly five years since March 2021. (Southern Daily)

The Russian Ministry of Defense announced on the 13th that Russian forces targeted multiple objectives, including Ukrainian military, energy facilities, and troop deployment points. Russian forces shot down one Ukrainian Su-27 fighter jet and destroyed one Ukrainian unmanned boat within a week; additionally, they took control of two settlements in Sumy and Donetsk. On the same day, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces released a battle update stating that 154 battles occurred on the front lines over the past day. Ukrainian forces launched strikes against several key Russian targets. They repelled multiple Russian attacks in the Kupiansk, Lyman, and other directions, and destroyed several pieces of Russian military equipment. (CCTV News)

Local time today (April 2nd) morning, the Israel Defense Forces stated that they have once again detected missile attacks launched by Iran, with no reports of casualties or property damage so far. This is also the fourth attack launched by Iran on that day. The IDF said that among the few missiles launched this time, one carried a cluster warhead. (CCTV International News)

On the 8th, the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference held meetings simultaneously, reviewing several bills including the Ecological and Environmental Code, the Law on Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress, and the National Development Planning Law, and held a press conference focusing on China's foreign policy.