Lithium Carbonate Prices Soared near CNY

SHANGHAI, Jan 12 (SMM) - The average monthly price of battery-grade lithium carbonate was 236,478 yuan/mt in December 2021, up 20% on the month. The prices are likely to rise further as the downstream restocking extends.

The prices of lithium carbonate rose sharply at the beginning of December. The downstream manufacturers have shown strong buying interest, sending the purchase prices to a high of 225,000 yuan/mt. The smelters raised their quotations to 210,000-230,000 yuan/mt, but large smelters offered discounts to major customers with long-term cooperation.

The prices continued to rise rapidly in the middle of the month. The quotations of battery-grade lithium carbonate rose to 230,000-245,000 yuan/mt. Recently, producers ramped up restocking sharply approaching the end of the year.

At the end of the month, some enterprises in Qinghai stopped taking orders, and they planned to start shipping in January, and the quotations were scarce. The traders sold a small amount of industrial-grade lithium carbonate at a high price of 230,000 yuan/mt. A small number of orders were signed in Sichuan and Jiangxi, and the quotations of battery-grade lithium carbonate rose to 240,000-280,000 yuan/mt. The upstream enterprises need to collect funds approaching the end of the year, and the downstream users were restocking raw materials intensively, which have resulted in the sharp rise in prices.