[SMM Analysis]As of month-end May 2025, the total inventory of the national passenger vehicle industry reached 3.45 million units, a decrease of 50,000 units MoM but an increase of 160,000 units YoY compared to the same period in 2024. According to the CPCA, the inventory of passenger vehicles for NEV manufacturers rose from 660,000 units in December 2024 to 880,000 units in May 2025. However, from the perspective of the inventory coefficient, the comprehensive inventory coefficient for auto dealers in May 2025 was 1.38, down 2.1% MoM and 4.2% YoY.

[SMM Analysis]Thai Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira recently signaled that the Thai government is planning a policy aimed at stimulating the consumer market for automobiles, which involves offering tax incentives to pickup truck owners with vehicles aged between 20 and 25 years for trading in their old vehicles for new ones.

[SMM Analysis]Recently, CEA has issued new regulations on the safety and power supply of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS). These regulations will take effect after being published in the official gazette and cover rules for the installation and operation of BESS assets, including the Battery Management System (BMS) and Power Conversion System (PCS).

[SMM Analysis]On June 19, 2025, the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) issued a Request for Selection (RfS) document, initiating a competitive tendering process. SECI, a government enterprise under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) of India, aims to advance the National Solar Mission. Similar to other solar + ESS tenders previously organized by SECI, the successful developers will sign a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with SECI to undertake the projects under a Build-Own-Operate (BOO) model. SECI will subsequently sell the electricity generated by the projects to designated buying entities. The addition of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) to the projects will enable power supply during peak periods.

[SMM Analysis]Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's chief trade negotiator, emphasized that Japan could not accept the US's imposition of a 25% tariff on imported cars. He pointed out that Japanese automakers produced approximately 3.3 million units in the US annually, significantly exceeding the 1.37 million cars they exported to the US. In addition, these Japanese automakers have invested over $60 billion in the US and created 2.3 million local jobs.

【SMM Analysis】Recycling Industry Events This Week (Jun. 16-20): This week's recycling industry events.

Echelon Utilization: Based on overall data analysis, vehicle sales showed some growth in June, but the support was limited. Demand in the energy storage sector remained stably supported by rigid requirements. The sales boom driven by earlier auto shows is gradually subsiding. The market penetration rate of new energy vehicles has stabilized, and current terminal market consumption momentum remains insufficient. Market sentiment suggests that incremental terminal demand is expected to be relatively limited.

This week, following the announcement of import/export restrictions by the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), cobalt sulfate prices continued to rise, nickel sulfate prices remained stable, while lithium carbonate prices saw a minor rebound and fluctuated. The recovery rates for black mass like ternary and lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) remained flat this week, with the cobalt rate seeing a slight increase and the lithium rate continuing to decline. Currently, lithium point prices for lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cathode black mass range from 2,150 to 2,300 yuan per lithium point, while LFP battery black mass lithium points range from 1,950 to 2,100 yuan. Taking ternary black mass as an example: current nickel-cobalt recovery rates for ternary cathode black mass are 72-74%, with lithium recovery rates at 66-70%. Recovery rates for ternary battery black mass nickel-cobalt are 70-72%.

In June 2024, Australian mining company Latitude 66 announced the discovery of a 2.5-kilometer-long mineralized corridor containing gold, cobalt, and copper in the K6 exploration area of northern Finland. Though still in early-stage exploration, the discovery could have far-reaching implications for Europe’s ongoing efforts to secure critical mineral supply chains. From a resource, geographic, and policy standpoint, the project shows strong potential to become a key contributor to Europe’s green energy transition.

This week, the spot lithium carbonate market exhibited a fluctuating trend, initially declining and then rebounding. The center of transaction prices shifted slightly higher WoW, but the overall market remained constrained by the fundamental pattern of oversupply, with no significant easing of the supply-demand imbalance.