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On January 30, Shanghai's Development and Reform Commission and Finance Bureau announced a policy to support vehicle replacement. Individuals who transfer a passenger car registered in their name and purchase a new energy passenger vehicle (listed in the NEV purchase tax exemption catalog) or a fuel-powered passenger vehicle with an engine displacement of 2.0 liters or less are eligible for subsidies. The subsidy for purchasing a new energy passenger vehicle is 8% of the vehicle price, capped at 15,000 yuan. For purchasing a fuel-powered vehicle (2.0L or below), the subsidy is 6% of the vehicle price, capped at 13,000 yuan.

On January 30, 2026, the Phase 3 chemical-grade spodumene concentrate expansion project at Talison successfully produced its first batch of qualified products and has now entered the production ramp-up stage. The project will provide a stable supply of raw materials for Tianqi Lithium's global production bases, enhance synergy across the industry chain, and is expected to further strengthen the company's profitability.

On January 30, EVE Energy announced that its partially-owned affiliate HYD Investment Limited (15% indirect stake) has signed a framework agreement with Indonesian state-owned enterprises ANTAM and IBC to collaborate across the entire new energy vehicle battery industry chain in Indonesia. The required ore will be supplied by an ANTAM subsidiary. The parties will jointly develop an integrated battery industry chain project in Indonesia, encompassing mining, smelting, refining, precursor and cathode materials, battery production, and recycling, achieving vertical integration from mining to end products.

On January 30, Huayou Cobalt announced that its controlled subsidiary HYD has signed a cooperation framework agreement with ANTAM and IBC. The three parties will collaborate in Indonesia to develop the full industry chain for new energy vehicle batteries. According to the agreement, the parties intend to invest in and construct an integrated battery industry in Indonesia, aiming to establish the country as a production base for electric vehicle batteries and other battery application products. These products will supply the domestic Indonesian market, regional markets, and international markets, thereby contributing positively to Indonesia's sustainable economic development.

GAC Group disclosed its 2025 Annual Performance Forecast on the 30th. The announcement indicates that due to increased sales investment, higher asset impairment provisions, and reduced investment income, the company expects its net profit attributable to shareholders to decline year-on-year for 2025. Meanwhile, public information shows that GAC Group achieved annual retail sales of 1.8135 million vehicles across the entire group in 2025. Driven by reform measures, the company has recorded three consecutive quarters of quarter-on-quarter sales growth starting from Q2. Notably, Q4 retail sales exceeded 537,800 vehicles, marking a quarter-on-quarter increase of 25.56%. In 2025, overseas sales of GAC's proprietary brands reached nearly 130,000 units, representing a 47% year-on-year growth.

On January 30, Lang Xianpeng, former Senior VP of Autonomous Driving at Li Auto, announced via social media that he has moved to lead humanoid robotics development, stating he will "learn and welcome guidance." Reports indicate Li Auto has restructured its R&D into foundational models, software, and hardware teams, with Lang heading hardware for robotics instead of autonomous driving. CEO Li Xiang recently told staff the company will develop humanoid robots alongside vehicles and plans a prompt launch.

[Ministry of Finance: Sales of Products Related to Consumer Goods Replacement Program Exceed 2.6 Trillion Yuan in 2025] On January 30, Wu Gai, Deputy Director of the Economic Development Department of the Ministry of Finance, stated at a press conference held by the ministry that, according to preliminary statistics, the sales of products related to the consumer goods replacement program exceeded 2.6 trillion yuan in 2025. The program benefited approximately 360 million person-times. Within this initiative, over 11.5 million vehicles were traded in under the auto replacement scheme, with new energy vehicles accounting for nearly 60% of the sales generated by the automobile trade-in program.

[SMM Analysis] In the first month of 2026, the lithium carbonate market experienced a retreat after a rapid rise. Starting from 120,000 yuan/mt at the beginning of the month, after a rapid surge and a brief pullback in mid-month, the price surged again in late January, breaking through the 180,000 yuan/mt mark. However, by month-end, as lithium carbonate prices retreated after the rapid rise, the monthly average price for battery-grade lithium carbonate in January was approximately 155,000 yuan/mt. Market characteristics this month included strong reluctance to sell among upstream players and increased purchase willingness from downstream buyers at relatively low price points.

SMM January 22 News: This week, nickel sulphate and cobalt sulphate prices were basically flat, while lithium carbonate prices fell before rising again.

Overview of Imports: This statistical analysis is based on HS code 38249999, which includes recycled intermediate products such as 3824999996 (recycled black mass for lithium-ion batteries) and 3824999995 (crude nickel-cobalt hydroxide). Imports in October totaled 804 mt, while November imports reached 814 mt, up 1.24% MoM. Overall, black mass imports showed signs of stabilizing at a low level in November after pulling back in October. Although unfavorable factors such as the risk of returns due to excessive fluorine content (>0.4%) and extended port inspection cycles in October were gradually absorbed, overall customs declaration and purchasing sentiment remained cautious. As a result, the actual effective clearance volume in November did not see a significant rebound, remaining at a low level of around 800 mt.

SMM January 29 News: This week, nickel sulphate prices remained stable, while lithium carbonate prices fluctuated.

SMM January 19 News: On January 16, 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, together with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of Commerce, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, jointly issued the "Interim Measures for the Recycling and Comprehensive Utilization of Waste Power Batteries of New Energy Vehicles (NEVs)." This new management measure is a joint departmental regulation with mandatory legal binding force, fundamentally changing the previous situation where guidance documents lacked sufficient enforceability.

According to SMM, on December 26, 2025, the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council issued an announcement on the 2026 tariff adjustment plan. Effective January 1, 2026, import tariff rates and categories for certain goods were adjusted.