Last week, the cobalt raw material market continued its weak performance, with various segments showing diverging trends while maintaining an overall undertone of pressure. In terms of cobalt salts, spot cobalt sulfate prices drifted gradually lower. While primary smelters kept their offers relatively firm, some recycling smelters and traders continued to offer concessions to conclude transactions amid cash-flow strains. Although downstream bid prices have largely converged with the lowest seller quotations, transactions remained limited due to insufficient alignment on commercial terms and product quality specifications. Cobalt chloride faced a near-market standstill, weighed down by lackluster demand for Co3O4 and the substitution effect from lower-priced cobalt sulfate. Overall, the cobalt industrial chain is currently in a phase of intense contestation between cost support and weak demand.