JPM Steel | Daily Despatch DDR4 +8% (hits new highs); USMCA review key dates; Whyalla process down to two bidders

Research evidence excerpt

JPM Steel | Daily Despatch DDR4 +8% (hits new highs); USMCA review key dates; Whyalla process down to two bidders

earnings call… Pricing has played

out as expected since March but demand has been very strong, with agentic AI and machine-to-machine workloads driving

inferencing as an increasingly larger portion of customer demand. Memory is increasingly framed as a strategic asset – higher-

performance, higher-reliability, and higher-capacity memory all add to the performance of AI models. The team also reiterated

that supply continues to be very difficult to increase, and tightness across HBM, DRAM, and NAND is expected to extend

well beyond CY26.” Source: J.P. Morgan (note)

• Matt Latimore pitched against Indian steelmaker in Whyalla plant bid: Coal magnate Matt Latimore’s M Resources and

India’s third-largest steelmaker Jindal Steel have emerged as the two final bidders for the Whyalla steelworks and nearby iron

ore mines, and will need to stump up several billion dollars in capital spending as part of any buyout plan. Former frontrunner

BlueScope Steel remains in talks with the administrator KordaMentha, and still holds a right of last offer – enabling it to

match any final bid by either of the two shortlisted parties. Source: AFR

• US-China copper scrap trade faces structural shift amid potential export restrictions: The global copper scrap market is

entering a period of structural tightening as geopolitical tensions and industrial policy increasingly reshape trade flows. The

relationship between the United States and China sits at the center of this transition, particularly as Washington considers

restricting exports of high-quality copper scrap in 2027 while China remains heavily dependent on imported secondary copper

feedstock. Source: SMM