[SMM Tin News Flash: MIIT and Four Other Departments Jointly Launch Special Enforcement Campaign to Regulate Scrap Power Battery Recycling and Utilization]

Core Lithium announced on May 20 that the Finniss project has officially commenced production resumption, with the Grants pit initiating its first blast. Raw ore processing is expected to begin in Q3 2026, and the first shipment of spodumene concentrates plans to be dispatched in Q4 2026.

Since May, the NEV market has quietly undergone a shift in direction — more than 10 mainstream automakers, including BYD and Changan Qiyuan, have raised prices on select car models, with per-vehicle increases ranging from 2,000 yuan to 10,000 yuan. Against the backdrop of rising raw material costs and industry profits under pressure, the unsustainable low-price involution in the auto market has given way to a round of price increases characterized by "cost-driven necessity, notable structural differentiation, and more diversified pricing approaches." Industry insiders generally believe that the NEV market is transitioning from the extensive price competition of "volume discounts" to a new phase of value-based competition centered on technology, products, and services.