Domestic lithium carbonate production in February was 32,000 tons, with an expected increase of 31% in March to 42,000 tons.

In terms of raw materials, due to the sluggish market conditions in the early period, some companies that purchased lithium ore from external sources had little or no profit, and most of these companies did not sign long-term contracts after the new year. Many small and medium-sized lithium salt companies that purchased raw materials from external sources began to gradually reduce and stop production in January and continued to do so until the end of February. Additionally, some larger lithium salt companies conducted annual routine maintenance before and after the Spring Festival in February, causing a significant decline in lithium carbonate production using lithium mica, lithium spodumene, and recycled materials as raw materials within China. Entering March, although some lithium salt companies have rotating maintenance at some of their bases, environmental factors in Jiangxi Province have delayed the resumption of production for small and medium-sized lithium salt companies in the region. However, this has not had a substantial impact on the production of large lithium salt companies in the area, and lithium salt companies outside Jiangxi Province have gradually resumed normal production. The recent market warming trend is expected to guide the production pace of some lithium salt companies, and it is expected that the production of lithium carbonate from domestic ore and recycled materials will significantly recover. It is anticipated that the domestic lithium carbonate production in March will be approximately 42,000 tons, an increase of 30.1% from the previous month and 41.6% year-on-year, representing an overall increase of about 2% from January and aligning with previous expectations. However, it is necessary to pay attention to whether there will be unexpected warming in demand.

for more information, please contatc Gina Wen: ginawen@smm.cn