[SMM Analysis] September Lithium data Analysis--

Published: Oct 20, 2019 16:16

SMM, 20 Oct:

With the stimulus of various consumption policies in the automobile industry, the production and sales data of the automobile industry in September showed a marked rebound from the previous month, and the year-on-year decline in sales in the industry was also narrower than that of the previous month. However, due to the substitution effect between traditional fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles, the production and sales of new energy vehicles have shown negative growth for the third consecutive month since July, and the rate of decline from the same period last year has been increasing every month.

In September, the production and sale of new energy vehicles in China reached 89000 and 80, 000 respectively, down 29.9 percent and 34.2 percent respectively over the same period last year. From the perspective of sub-models, with the end of the transitional period of new energy bus subsidy policy, the current new energy vehicles return to the market structure with passenger vehicles as the core. In September, the output of new energy passenger vehicles was 80,000, accounting for 89.9 percent of the total output.

For the fourth quarter of the expectations of new energy vehicles, we believe that due to the same period last year, the industry believes that the time of subsidy retreating will be ahead of schedule, the end of the year's "rush" will be strong, the tail-warping effect is obvious. However, this year, a large number of new energy vehicle demand has been overdrawn in advance before the end of the subsidy transition period in the middle of the year, superimposed on the "national five" to "national six" policy has a substitution effect on new energy vehicles, resulting in no significant improvement in the new energy vehicle market since the second half of the year. According to the current annual plan of the mainframe plant for each model, production expectations have been reduced by different ranges, and given that the mainframe factory will still seize the opportunity of subsidies this year, we still maintain the previous forecast of 1.4 million production for the whole of 2019.

Source: SMM

According to the SMM new energy database, the total installed capacity of power batteries in September was 3.95GWhH, an increase of 15.5% over the previous month and a sharp drop of 97.4% from the same period last year. In terms of battery type, the installed capacity of ternary batteries was 2.9GWhT, accounting for 73.3%, down 3.9% from the previous month, while lithium iron phosphate batteries accounted for 0.95 GWH, accounting for 24.4%, up 3.3% from the previous month. From different models, the installed capacity of new energy passenger vehicles is 3.03GWha, accounting for 76.5%; the installed capacity of new energy passenger cars is 0.74GWha, accounting for 18.7%; the installed capacity of new energy special vehicles is 0.19GWha, accounting for 4.7%.

After the "rush loading" of new energy buses in August, the installed capacity of lithium iron phosphate battery declined, but based on its own cost advantages, lithium iron phosphate battery was gradually favored by the main machine factory, and the proportion of installed capacity began to rise in September.

Source: SMM

Let's take a look at the market share of power batteries in September. In the ranking of power battery installed capacity in September, the market share of Ningde era decreased slightly, accounting for 55.7%. In addition, AVIC Lithium Power jumped to third place this month with its installation of new energy for Guangzhou Automobile and Changan Automobile. In September, the installed capacity of CR10, CR5 and CR3 was 92.1%, 82.6% and 74%, respectively.

 

SMM Cobalt Lithium Research team

Hong Lu 021-51666814

Qin Jingjing 021-51666828

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or for more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn
For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn
Related News
[SMM News] Core Lithium's Finniss Restart Reaches a Key Milestone
9 hours ago
[SMM News] Core Lithium's Finniss Restart Reaches a Key Milestone
Read More
[SMM News] Core Lithium's Finniss Restart Reaches a Key Milestone
[SMM News] Core Lithium's Finniss Restart Reaches a Key Milestone
On September 8, Core Lithium announced that its Finniss Lithium Project in Australia’s Northern Territory had produced its first spodumene concentrate from the recommissioned processing plant. The milestone was achieved around six months after the company made the final investment decision (FID) to restart Finniss in March 2026 and was in line with its target for the September quarter. Mining at the Grants open pit resumed in May, followed by the restart of crushing operations in August, while the processing plant is currently undergoing commissioning and optimisation. According to Core Lithium, upgrades to the processing plant are expected to improve mineral liberation and recovery rates while increasing processing capacity by approximately 20% to 1.2 million tonnes per annum. The company continues to target the first shipment of newly produced spodumene concentrate in the fourth quarter of 2026, while development of the BP33 underground mine is also progressing.
9 hours ago
[Li-battery: CALB signs deal for Hefei research institute, to recruit over 2,000 R&D staff]
10 hours ago
[Li-battery: CALB signs deal for Hefei research institute, to recruit over 2,000 R&D staff]
Read More
[Li-battery: CALB signs deal for Hefei research institute, to recruit over 2,000 R&D staff]
[Li-battery: CALB signs deal for Hefei research institute, to recruit over 2,000 R&D staff]
CALB signed a cooperation agreement with the Changfeng county government on Sept 8, officially landing its Hefei research institute. The project includes pilot lines, R&D labs and testing centers for lithium batteries and related products. CALB chairwoman Liu Jingyu said the institute will build a full-chain innovation loop from R&D to pilot verification to product testing, with over 2,000 R&D staff to be recruited. CALB's Hefei base phases I and II are in production, phase III is about to start and phase IV is under construction; at full capacity it will become CALB's largest production base in China.
10 hours ago
SMM Daily Review: Spot lithium carbonate prices drifted lower on September 9
10 hours ago
SMM Daily Review: Spot lithium carbonate prices drifted lower on September 9
Read More
SMM Daily Review: Spot lithium carbonate prices drifted lower on September 9
SMM Daily Review: Spot lithium carbonate prices drifted lower on September 9
Today, SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate spot prices drifted lower compared with the previous working day. The lithium carbonate 2701 contract opened lower today at 142,900 yuan/mt, then quickly dipped after the open, hitting a low near 140,600 yuan/mt, before consolidating and rebounding. In early trading, bulls gained momentum and prices shot up to an intraday high of 144,400 yuan/mt, before encountering selling pressure from bears and pulling back below the average price line. Around midday, bulls and bears tussled repeatedly in the 140,000-142,000 yuan range, with prices moving sideways around the average price line. In the afternoon, the market was in a stalemate between bulls and bears, and prices fluctuated slightly in late trading, closing near 142,000 yuan/mt. The contract ultimately settled down 0.69% at 142,000 yuan/mt, with open interest increasing by 6,860 lots. In the spot market, downstream buyers maintained a dip-buying procurement pace, but some material plants were more cautious, pressing their acceptable purchase prices below 140,000 yuan/mt. Upstream lithium chemical plants continued to hold back from selling spot orders and held prices firm, with limited release of low-priced cargoes. Price disagreements between sellers and buyers persisted, while market inquiries were relatively active, and actual transactions were mainly driven by rigid demand.
10 hours ago