Lithium: The lithium smelters were cautious in purchasing raw materials on bearish attitude towards lithium prices based on the available production scheduling or downstream market players. Some smelters purchased spot lithium ore to deliver their long-term orders. It is projected that the lithium ore prices will move rangebound in the short period along with downstream lithium carbonate prices. For lithium carbonate, the spot prices inched down, amid constantly falling futures prices. The market players were generally pessimistic. The downstream players stockpiled on rigid demand only, leading to poor transactions. The lithium carbonate prices are likely to stay soft in the near term.
Nickel: The nickel sulfate prices declined amid weakening demand from ternary precursor companies and weakening cost support caused by falling nickel price. For nickel plate produced with nickel sulfate, the production ramped up as some manufacturers maintained profits via hedging tools, though the real-time profit was in the negative. Nevertheless, the overall demand for nickel sulfate was poor, and most downstream players purchased on rigid demand.
Cobalt: The market players were increasingly wait-and-see due to persistently poor downstream demand. A top-tier downstream buyer issued a bidding for 300 tonnes cobalt sulfate, but the bids were relatively low. Some smelters suspended making quotations, and the transactions were lackluster. The downstream players mostly replied on their existing raw material stocks. It is likely that the prices will drop further.
Battery scrap: The battery scrap market extended the weakness yesterday. The payables of NMC black mass stabilized as the sellers held the prices firm. The hydrometallurgical plants maintained their operating rates at around 50% due to constant losses when the prices kept falling.
Repurposing: The transactions on the repurposing market were poor yesterday, as the falling prices of metal salts since May greatly dampened the confidence of market players, who stood on the sidelines.
