China's March Mn3O4 output and April forecast

In March, China's trimanganese tetraoxide (Mn3O4) output stood at 9,300 mt (including 4,900 mt of electronics-grade Mn3O4 and 4,400 mt of battery-grade Mn3O4), up 45.3% MoM and down 13.8% YoY. The output of electronic-grade and battery-grade Mn3O4 both increased, contributed by two reasons. 1. Production resumption after the Spring Festival and new production capacity. 2. The rising LMO cathode output elevated the purchasing demand for battery-grade Mn3O4, while increased terminal orders compared with February released the demand for electronics-grade Mn3O4. As LMO producers were relatively sensitive to the spot price of lithium carbonate, the latter price fluctuation in March caused most of them to determine production based on sales, rather than restocking.

Entering April, it is expected that the output of electronic-grade Mn3O4 will continue to rise, and the demand for battery-grade Mn3O4 will be further released due to the recovery of the LMO market. The total Mn3O4 output in April is expected to be about 10,200 mt.