Ternary Cathode Material Prices Slumped In March

SHANGHAI, Apr 19 (SMM) –Ternary cathode materials: The monthly average price stood at 230,000 yuan/mt in March, a drop of 25% month-on-month and 37.5% year-on-year. The prices are forecast to shed slightly in April.

The slump in lithium prices significantly lowered the production costs of ternary cathode materials. Demand from the domestic NEV market was slowly recovering in early March, but began to weaken in mid-March. The demand growth from overseas NEV market cooled down. Demand from the digital electronics sector improved only mildly. Steadily falling raw material prices kept downstream buyers on the sidelines. Inquiries and transactions were muted throughout the month. In order to grasp orders, some producers even sold at prices that were far below the market prices.