In a year, the wind turned several times, 315 pushed the topic of quality to the front of the stage, SMM WCCE conference raised the consensus of returning price to rationality and moving quality to the future, new companies relay to enter the capital market, Yarlung Zangbo River hydropower station press the start button, the cable circle is not low in popularity, are you also asking what happened this year?

First, let's take a look at State Grid Corporation of China. On February 22, they released a regional joint procurement plan, which divided the country into five major joint zones and covered seven key categories, with a total of 1642 materials. Behind it is a volume of over 105.7 billion yuan in procurement in 2024. Unified organization, regional cooperation, centralized classification, regular rotation, and four key words were taken out, making the process smoother, standards stricter, and duplicate procurement less. The industry is moving towards scale and standardization. Later, Heshun Electric won over 100 million yuan projects with its technological advantages. In December, it was disclosed that joint procurement supported whom, and the answer is clear, right?

Speaking of 315, the quality of cables has been criticized for cutting corners, substandard conductor resistance, rapid aging of insulation layers, and low voltage cables commonly found in home decoration projects. The problem is eye-catching and consumers are paying closer attention. Do you dare not take it seriously? Top enterprises respond quickly, disclose raw material traceability, factory testing standards, increase transparency, start industry self-examination, follow up on standard upgrades, and question the idea of low price competition. Ultimately, it is still about quality, and the price war is turning towards a value war. Are you willing to pay for good products?

Capital has also provided an accelerator. On March 21st, New Asia Cable was listed on the main board of the Shenzhen Stock Exchange, raising 439 million yuan to bet on the research and development of special cables. On August 20th, Hongyuan Co., Ltd. was listed on the Beijing Stock Exchange, raising 281 million yuan to expand its electromagnetic wire production line. On the first day, the stock price rose by 18 and 25, which was unstable. The market voted in, and the track of new energy sources combined with power grid upgrades was recognized by capital. The top companies expanded their production capacity and focused on high-end products. Is the gap between them and small and medium-sized factories widening?

In terms of technology, AI computing power drives the expansion of data centers. By 2025, with full power, high-speed interconnection, high-power transmission, cables are essential. Copper cables are used for short distance interconnection in cabinets, with low latency, low power consumption, and strong stability. In high-density computing clusters, high-end standard copper cables and active copper cables are more popular, and configurations are customized towards high-end. Server power is increasing, liquid cooling is becoming popular, and dedicated cables for liquid cooling systems have higher requirements for temperature resistance, insulation, and stability, with much more usage than air cooling. Are you making this product?

There are also new scenarios on the production side, with intelligent acceleration running from the laboratory to the factory, landing in cable production, different specifications and processes, autonomous perception and decision-making, more agile robotic arms, insulation layer scratch recognition, conductor burr sorting, precision wire harness assembly. It is capable of these delicate tasks, but there is a shortage of labor in high-risk positions, and manual detection is prone to leakage and pain points are broken down. The equipment will learn and switch tasks, and customized order wire replacement will be faster. Real time data feedback, continuous process optimization, and both qualification rate and stability are important. Isn't this what you want in terms of flexibility?

The annual event in the industry, SMM WCCE 2025, was held in Wuzhong, Suzhou from May 22nd to 23rd. More than 350 upstream and downstream enterprises attended, and more than 600 participants were present. The exhibitor satisfaction rate was 82, the audience satisfaction rate was 92, and there were many supply-demand matching meetings, special forums, metal preservation strategy discussions, and on-site discussions on cooperation. What's even more impressive is the release of a wire and cable category quotation system. The data is objective and updated in a timely manner, and many companies use it as a pricing reference. Do you think it's useful?

Two tools have also been launched, releasing the industrial distribution map of China's wire and cable industry and the procurement guide for production equipment consumables and accessories at the conference site. The distribution map clearly marks the production capacity layout, regional leaders, and raw material bases, making the pattern of East China clustering and the rise of the central and western regions more intuitive. The procurement guide includes thousands of equipment and consumables suppliers and parameters, screening efficiency improvement, investment, production, and procurement. With data, there is confidence. Do you think such tools should have been available earlier?

A big opportunity at the project end. On July 19, the hydropower project at the lower reaches of the the Yarlung Zangbo River was started, with a total investment of 1.2 trillion yuan, an installed capacity of 600-81 million kilowatts, more than twice as large as the Three Gorges. Five cascade power stations, with an estimated annual power generation of more than 300 billion degrees, high sea pull, high seismic intensity, tunnel diversion, bending and straightening, high requirements for cables, ultra-high voltage cross-linked cables, special cables resistant to cold and strong earthquakes, and long-distance transmission of Tibetan power, have amplified the demand for ultra-high voltage cables with low loss and high reliability. Are you ready?

External shocks have also come. Starting from August 1st, the United States has imposed a general 50% tariff on imported semi-finished copper and copper intensive derivatives, including cable connectors. According to Section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act, the goal is to rebuild the position of the local copper industry. American manufacturers are facing a dilemma: import costs may increase, local raw materials may also be insufficient, global copper trade routes may change, there may be hoarding before policies, and supply chains will be forced to rearrange after policies. Companies exporting to the United States are beginning to turn to new markets such as Southeast Asia, and the trend of regionalization is emerging. Uncertainty is increasing. Will your orders be affected?

At the end of the year, on December 27th, the Shanghai copper 2602 contract surged to 101380 yuan per ton, an increase of 3270 yuan per day, an increase of 3.33 yuan per ton. Copper is the main component of cable costs, accounting for 60-80% of the total cost, with an increase of 1000 yuan per ton, resulting in an average cost increase of 60-120 yuan per kilometer. When copper prices fall, this path cannot be continued. The top enterprises are not waiting, and their product structure is tilting towards special cables to reduce sensitivity to copper prices. Technological innovation is seeking cost reduction, more efficient equipment, alternative materials, design optimization to reduce copper consumption, upstream and downstream price linkage, signing long-term agreements, risk diversification. Do you want to follow?

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