Morning reading: The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission urges central enterprises to take the lead in "fighting internal involution," as rebar prices fall below 3,100.

　　◎ The State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council held a symposium on the economic performance of selected state-owned enterprises, aiming to gain insights into their operational status, identify challenges they face, and focus on stabilizing electricity prices, controlling coal prices, and preventing "involution"-style malicious competition. During the meeting, the commission sought input and suggestions from the enterprises themselves, while also delving deeper into policy measures designed to strengthen the foundation for high-quality development. Zhang Yuzhuo, Director of the SASAC, emphasized that central enterprises must take the lead in firmly resisting "involution"-style competition.

　　◎ U.S. President Trump announced that, starting October 1, a new round of hefty tariffs will be imposed on various imported products, including a 50% tariff on kitchen cabinets, bathroom vanities, and related building materials; a 30% tariff on imported furniture; and an additional 100% tariff on patented and branded pharmaceuticals.

　　◎ National Bureau of Statistics: From January to August, industrial enterprises above designated size across the country achieved total profits of 4,692.97 billion yuan, representing a year-on-year increase of 0.9%. Among them, from January to August, the ferrous metal smelting and rolling industries turned profitable, recording total profits of 83.7 billion yuan, compared to a loss in the same period last year.

　　◎ Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang of the State Council co-chaired the 22nd Meeting of the China-Russia Energy Cooperation Committee with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Novak. During the meeting, both sides reviewed cooperation progress in areas such as oil, natural gas, coal, electricity, renewable energy, and nuclear energy, and exchanged in-depth views on next steps, reaching a broad consensus.

　　◎ The Monetary Policy Committee of the central bank held its regular meeting for the third quarter of 2025. The meeting emphasized the need to step up efforts in injecting liquidity and credit into the economy, ensuring that the growth of social financing and money supply aligns with the projected targets for economic growth and overall price levels. It also stressed the importance of implementing and refining a moderately accommodative monetary policy while strengthening counter-cyclical adjustments.

　　◎ In August, the U.S. core PCE price index rose 0.2% from the previous month, matching both the estimate and the prior reading of 0.3%. Meanwhile, the core PCE price index increased 2.9% year-on-year, in line with expectations and unchanged from the previous value of 2.9%.

　　◎ On September 27, Tangshan Qian'an Pufang billet resources were lowered by 10 yuan per ton, including tax, to 2,980 yuan/ton.

　　◎ On September 26, national major port iron ore transactions totaled 949,000 tons, down 14.6% from the previous day; meanwhile, mainstream traders reported building steel sales of 101,100 tons, a 6.6% decrease compared to the prior day.

　　◎ This week, the total inventory of imported iron ore at 47 ports nationwide reached 145.5068 million tons, an increase of 1.69 million tons from the previous week. Meanwhile, the total inventory of imported iron ore held by steel plants across the country stood at 97.3639 million tons, up 4.2696 million tons compared to the prior week.

　　◎ This week, the blast furnace utilization rate at 247 steel plants stood at 84.45%, up 0.47 percentage points from the previous week and 6.22 percentage points year-on-year; daily average molten iron production reached 2.4236 million tons, an increase of 13,400 tons compared to the prior week, and a year-on-year rise of 175,000 tons.

　　◎ This week, the capacity utilization rate of a sample of 230 independent coking enterprises nationwide was 75.31%, down 0.04%; daily average coke production fell by 0.02 million tons to 531,200 tons, while coke inventories decreased by 26,700 tons to 395,400 tons.

　　◎ The Ministry of Commerce and three other departments jointly announced that, starting from January 1, 2026, export licenses will be required for certain all-electric passenger vehicles.

　　◎ The China Coking Industry Association issued a statement: It has never released or authorized any notices or initiatives regarding "mandatory production cuts" or "joint price hikes." The association consistently adheres strictly to national laws and regulations, firmly safeguarding a market environment that upholds fair competition.

　　◎ According to the website of the China Iron and Steel Association, on September 25, Xining Special Steel Co., Ltd. publicly announced the progress of its ultra-low emission transformation and the ongoing evaluation and monitoring efforts. Currently, 208 steel enterprises have already been listed for public disclosure on the China Iron and Steel Association's website. More details >>

　　◎ It is reported that several New First-Tier cities, including Hefei, Chongqing, Chengdu, Nanjing, Zhuhai, Foshan, and others, are currently studying the latest policy measures for the real estate market. These initiatives aim to further stimulate demand for home improvements and provide targeted support for homebuyers. More such measures are expected to be rolled out in the coming days.

　　◎ The "Work Plan for Steady Growth in the Petrochemical and Chemical Industry (2025-2026)" has been issued, outlining that from 2025 to 2026, the added value of the petrochemical and chemical industry will grow by more than 5% annually. The plan also emphasizes strict control over new refining capacity, while carefully determining the scale and timing of newly added ethylene and paraxylene production capacities to prevent the risk of overcapacity in the coal-to-methanol industry.