Lithium: The spodumene concentrate prices stood high last week as the traders held the prices firm. The consumers with rigid demand had to purchase the high-priced goods due to tight spots supply. For lepidolite, the prices were supported by both narrowing supply and slightly improving demand. In this case, the lithium ore prices were resilient though the lithium carbonate prices pulled back. It is likely that the lithium ore prices will keep rangebound in the short period. For lithium carbonate, the spot prices edged down, and the market inquiries and quotations were relatively active. But the actual transactions were subsided. And it is projected that the lithium carbonate spot prices will hover rangebound in the short period.
Nickel: The quotations for nickel sulfate were mostly around Yuan 25,000-25,500/tonne. Though the production scheduling of top-tier integrated producers was sound, the demand for outsourced raw materials was muted. On the other hand, the independent cathode factories were cautious in building raw material stocks. Therefore, it is likely that the nickel sulfate prices will remain flat with the nickel price staying rangebound.
Cobalt: The cobalt chemicals transaction prices dropped last week on bearish sentiment as a result of poor end-market demand. The demand in the consumer electronics and electric vehicles sectors failed to show signs of improvement. The downtream players were cautious in purchasing raw materials approaching the year-end, and the transactions were lackluster. Since the market remains oversupplied, the cobalt chemicals prices are likely to remain at the current level with occasional drops in the short period.
Battery scrap: The battery scrap absolute prices inched down last week, and the transactions were muted. The payables were stable. The hydrometallurgical plant slowered the bids appropriately. And LFP prices were weighed on by the soft lithium carbonate prices.
