The most-traded GFEX lithium carbonate futures price slumped last Friday with the impacts of multiple bears. On the macro front, Hawkish ECB tightening, Middle East-driven crude gains, hotter-than-expected U.S. PPI, and a breakout rise in long-term Treasury yields cooled sentiment across nonferrous metals, deepening lithium carbonate's short-term slump.
On the fundamentals, the market was constrained by rising supply, as well as concerns over demand sustainability. Some leading ternary cell makers saw clearly weaker orders and pickup pace, contrasting with LFP's tight supply. Market expectations for next year's demand have remained bearish, a view unlikely to be disproven before year-end. Lastly, the revealation of more hidden lithium carbonate inventory prompted some players to leave the market for risk control. Overall, while the fundamentals have been solid, it is likely that the lithium carbonate prices will hover rangebound in the near term following the digestion of bears.
