SMM Analysis: Weekly Review of the Lithium Carbonate Market: Prices Remain Stable, Buyers and Sellers Continue to Be Deadlocked

This week, the spot price of lithium carbonate remained stable overall. Today, the average price of battery-grade lithium carbonate was 71,550 yuan/mt, while the average price of industrial-grade lithium carbonate remained stable at 69,650 yuan/mt, with no significant downward trend in the overall price center.
      From the current market transaction situation, downstream material plants mainly rely on long-term contracts and customer supply, with spot order procurement demand continuing to weaken. In the absence of clear production schedule signals from subsequent demand, downstream enterprises only maintain just-in-time procurement, with low inventory willingness and strong wait-and-see sentiment. The divergence in price trends between buyers and sellers is difficult to reconcile in the short term. Although some lithium chemical plants have already implemented minor production cuts, the current total supply remains high, and the reduction is unlikely to change the supply-demand surplus situation. However, if the production cuts by lithium chemical plants continue to intensify, it may provide some support to the price decline. In the short term, the lithium carbonate market may continue to fluctuate rangebound.