China's LCO output totaled 10,970 tonnes in July, moving up 2.52% compared to last month. In July, the rapid surge in cobalt intermediates price prompted downstream battery cell manufacturers to stock up. However, new orders for LCO remained subdued, with supply primarily relying on long-term contracts. Smelters maintained stable production, resulting in minimal month-on-month output fluctuations with a marginal increase.
It's likely that China's LCO output in August may be at 11,800 tonnes, with a month-on-month increase of 1.91% as August-September is the peak season for 3C electronic products amid the rising demand. Meanwhile, battery cell factories may gradually boost cobalt prices and build up stocks in advance due to the tight supply of raw materials. In this condition, there will be more purchases in August, leading to slightly increase in LCO production.
Edited by Cassie Li, lixiangying@mysteel.com
