SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Rose in a Volatile Range on August 17

Published: Aug 17, 2026 17:36

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[SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Rose in a Volatile Range on August 17]

SMM’s spot price for battery-grade lithium carbonate rose in a volatile range compared with the previous business day. The most-traded lithium carbonate contract rolled from 2609 to 2701. It opened higher at 155,600 yuan/mt. After the open, bulls quickly pushed prices up, with prices shooting up to 157,500 yuan/mt to set an intraday high, before facing selling pressure from bears and pulling back in choppy trading. In the morning session, prices fluctuated within 154,000–155,500 yuan/mt, with the center gradually moving lower. Around noon, bears stepped up their selling, accelerating the drop to 151,800 yuan/mt. In the afternoon, prices consolidated at lows; although there was a slight rebound, prices failed to break above the pressure from the average price line. Late in the session, prices moved sideways within 153,300–153,500 yuan/mt, and finally closed down 0.44% at 153,500 yuan/mt, with open interest increasing by 18,658 lots.

Spot market, downstream material plants purchased as needed on dips, but as prices continued to drift lower in choppy trading, wait-and-see sentiment remained strong. Large-scale restocking had yet to emerge, and overall activity was still dominated by just-in-time procurement. Supply side, upstream lithium chemical plants’ sentiment to hold prices firm persisted, and the offer levels used for some spot orders’ shipments were notably higher than actual market transaction levels; however, a small number of lithium chemical plants kept spot-order selling at a normal pace. Overall, both the activity of market inquiries and actual transactions recovered somewhat.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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