On December 30, the price of electrolytic cobalt surged Yuan 11,272/tonne to Yuan 456,433-460,000/tonne from the previous trading day. In addition, the prices of cobalt chloride and cobalt sulfate both remained unchanged at Yuan 110,000-114,000/t and 90,000/t-95,000/t respectively.Recent transactions for cobalt sulfate have been relatively sluggish. The tight supply pattern of raw materials persists, placing pressure on smelters' production and prompting them to maintain firm quotations. On the demand side, most downstream users have built up inventory by year-end, adopting a cautious procurement strategy focused on digesting existing stocks. New cobalt sulfate offers generally stand above Yuan 90,000/t, but there is a significant price discrepancy between buyers and sellers, resulting in small-volume transactions dominating the market. As the supply of cobalt intermediates continues to tighten, cobalt sulfate prices are expected to maintain an upward trend.