Monthly Lithium Market Report Jul 2019
2019-08-14 17:55:17 【Print】
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Market Highlights
Entering July, the Chinese power car market saw limited transactions and cathode material producers reported notably decreasing outputs. Accordingly their demand for raw material battery grade lithium carbonate weakened. Moreover, feeling bearish on future lithium carbonate prices, downstream consumers were inactive in making purchases, buying battery grade lithium carbonate only in small quantities, leading to limited transactions and decreasing prices for battery grade lithium carbonate. Affected by dropping prices for battery grade lithium carbonate, some purifying companies kept cutting their purchasing prices for industrial grade lithium carbonate; further depressed by weak demand from LMO and LFP markets, prices for industrial grade lithium carbonate moved down. As for lithium hydroxide, since there were no notable improvements seen in the Chinese high-nickel LNCMO market, consumers from this market showed no better demand for raw material lithium hydroxide, leading to dropping lithium hydroxide prices. Regarding lithium metal, as solid-state battery producers made decreasing sales, downstream demand for lithium metal shrank and prices for lithium metal moved down sharply.
As a result of dropping subsidies on new energy autos in 2019, the Chinese power car market saw limited sales; in addition, many market players faced tight cash flows, and battery producers showed sharply shrinking interest in purchasing LNCMO, leading to dramatically dropping LNCMO outputs. But with cobalt prices beginning to rebound, LNCMO prices also tended to stabilize after previous decreases. As for LCO, as the 3C market was in the traditional off season, battery producers showed weak demand for raw material LCO; but since cobalt tetroxide producers began to raise their prices, LCO producers intended to keep their prices firm on account of rising raw material costs. As a result, LCO prices began to stabilize after continuous decreases.
Entering July, the Chinese power car market saw limited transactions and cathode material producers reported notably decreasing outputs. Accordingly their demand for raw material battery grade lithium carbonate weakened. Moreover, feeling bearish on future lithium carbonate prices, downstream consumers were inactive in making purchases, buying battery grade lithium carbonate only in small quantities, leading to limited transactions and decreasing prices for battery grade lithium carbonate. Affected by dropping prices for battery grade lithium carbonate, some purifying companies kept cutting their purchasing prices for industrial grade lithium carbonate; further depressed by weak demand from LMO and LFP markets, prices for industrial grade lithium carbonate moved down. As for lithium hydroxide, since there were no notable improvements seen in the Chinese high-nickel LNCMO market, consumers from this market showed no better demand for raw material lithium hydroxide, leading to dropping lithium hydroxide prices. Regarding lithium metal, as solid-state battery producers made decreasing sales, downstream demand for lithium metal shrank and prices for lithium metal moved down sharply.
As a result of dropping subsidies on new energy autos in 2019, the Chinese power car market saw limited sales; in addition, many market players faced tight cash flows, and battery producers showed sharply shrinking interest in purchasing LNCMO, leading to dramatically dropping LNCMO outputs. But with cobalt prices beginning to rebound, LNCMO prices also tended to stabilize after previous decreases. As for LCO, as the 3C market was in the traditional off season, battery producers showed weak demand for raw material LCO; but since cobalt tetroxide producers began to raise their prices, LCO producers intended to keep their prices firm on account of rising raw material costs. As a result, LCO prices began to stabilize after continuous decreases.
