SMM April 16 update:
Electrolyte market prices declined this week. Specifically, the average prices of electrolyte for ternary power battery, LFP, and LMO applications were 29,250 yuan/mt, 27,500 yuan/mt, and 21,750 yuan/mt, respectively. Cost side, the overall cost of electrolyte edged down this week. Solvent side, supported by stable upstream raw material prices, solvent prices remained generally stable. LiPF6 side, although prices of its core raw materials anhydrous hydrogen fluoride and lithium fluoride both rose, pushing up lithium chemicals costs, some enterprises still faced certain inventory pressure. Additionally, with the export tax rebate deadline having passed, the earlier rush to export exerted some downward pressure on recent exports, and downstream players continued to push for lower prices out of cost control considerations, causing LiPF6 market prices to continue declining. This in turn drove down electrolyte costs, which gradually transmitted to the product side, with electrolyte prices pulling back in tandem. Demand side, auto sales of NEVs were expected to rebound, boosted by auto shows in April and May. Combined with steady growth in energy storage demand, overall lithium battery demand showed a positive trend. Supply side, the electrolyte industry generally adopted a produce-based-on-sales model, and driven by downstream demand boost, overall industry production rose accordingly. Overall, given the relatively weak bargaining power of the electrolyte industry, subsequent price trends still need to closely track changes in upstream raw material prices.
SMM New Energy Research Team
Wang Cong 021-51666838
Ma Rui 021-51595780
Feng Disheng 021-51666714
Lv Yanlin 021-20707875
Xu Mengqi 021-20707868
Hu Xuejie 021-20707858
Chen Bolin 021-51666836
Wang Yizhou 021-51595909
