According to the monitoring of the commodity market analysis system of SunSirs, the prices of industrial grade and battery grade lithium carbonate still showed a downward trend this week. On April 7th, the average domestic mixed price of industrial grade lithium carbonate was 196,000 RMB/ton, a decrease of 12.73% compared to the average price of 224,600 RMB/ton on April 2nd. The average domestic mixed price of battery grade lithium carbonate on April 7th was 230,000 RMB/ton, a decrease of 11.2% compared to the average price of 259,000 RMB/ton on April 2nd.
Analysis review
By observing market changes, it can be seen that the price of lithium carbonate had continued to decline significantly this week. In terms of supply, although some lithium salt plants were expected to reduce production and stop production, the overall inventory level was still at a high level and there was no significant reduction. The situation of oversupply in the market was still ongoing, which led to some low-priced selling behavior continuing to drive down spot prices.
In terms of demand, due to the weak willingness of downstream customers to receive goods, the market demand had become increasingly weak. In addition, the market had always been in a downward trend, and the overall market atmosphere this week was still relatively cold, with both supply and demand sides on the sidelines.
The downstream lithium hydroxide market was showing a downward trend. Due to the continued decline in the lithium carbonate market, there was insufficient support for the lithium hydroxide market. Supply side enterprises mainly focused on normal production, while demand for overseas markets on the demand side had slightly rebounded. However, domestic market demand remained weak. The transaction volume in the spot market was limited, and the mentality of the industry was insufficient, leading to a weakening focus in lithium hydroxide negotiations.
The downstream lithium iron phosphate market was showing a downward trend, and due to the weakening of downstream demand, lithium iron phosphate enterprises had accumulated a certain amount of inventory. Under inventory pressure, low-priced shipments occurred, but market transactions were still relatively low. The two main raw materials, lithium carbonate and iron phosphate, continued to decline, with insufficient cost support.
Market outlook
Lithium carbonate analysts from SunSirs believe that the current lithium carbonate market is still affected by a pattern of oversupply, market demand is at a low level, making it difficult for large quantities of individual orders to be traded. It is expected that the price of lithium carbonate will continue to be weak and downward in the short term.
