[SMM Flash] Middle East October Sulfur Contract Prices Announced

[NEV Charging on Highways Nears 3 Million Times in First 3 Days of National Day Holiday, with Charging Volume Exceeding 71 Million kWh] NEV charging demand was robust in the first three days of the National Day holiday, and highway charging infrastructure operated smoothly. From 00:00 on October 1 to 24:00 on October 3, statistical analysis of 62,700 highway charging facilities (connectors) included in the national charging facility monitoring service platform shows that the total number of NEV charging sessions on highways nationwide in the first three days of this year's National Day holiday reached 2.9686 million, with a daily average of 989,500, up 48.41% YoY over the same period of last year's National Day holiday. Charging volume reached 71.6193 million kWh, with a daily average of 23.8731 million kWh, up 49.39% YoY over the same period of last year's National Day holiday. The penetration rate of green travel during holidays continued to rise, and the trend of people using NEVs for long-distance travel became increasingly evident.

In August 2026, Indonesia's total monthly sulphur imports were 275,300 mt, down 62.1% MoM and down 27.7% YoY. The main import sources were Canada (76,100 mt), Kuwait (50,900 mt), Qatar (36,700 mt), the UAE (31,600 mt), India (26,400 mt), the US (24,600 mt), South Korea (6,900 mt), Japan (5,200 mt), Singapore (5,000 mt), China, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, China, the UK, Oman, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Indonesia's total monthly sulphur exports were 139 mt, down 50.1% MoM and up 139 mt YoY. The main export destinations were Malaysia (115 mt), Hong Kong, China (24 mt), and the US. Indonesia's total monthly sulphuric acid imports were 72,600 mt, up 72,600 mt MoM and up 35.3% YoY. The main import sources were India (44,100 mt) and South Korea (28,500 mt). In August, Indonesia had no sulphuric acid export records. For details, please refer to the SMM analysis.

Currently, LFP has become the dominant cathode material technology route for lithium batteries. According to the latest data released by the China Automotive Power Battery Industry Innovation Alliance, in the first eight months of this year, China's cumulative installed capacity of LFP batteries reached 402.7 GWh, accounting for 82.3% of total installed capacity, up 18.3% YoY. Cumulative ESS battery sales reached 450.5 GWh, accounting for 32.5% of total sales, up 83.8% YoY. ESS battery cathode materials are almost entirely LFP. Based on demand estimates for key materials used in power and other batteries, China's LFP material demand reached 3.124 million mt in the first eight months of this year.