SHANGHAI, Feb 14 (SMM) - LFP: Average monthly price was 154,000 yuan/mt in January, down 2.3% MoM and up 76% YoY, and to trend lower in February.
In early January, the prices of LFP began to drop driven by falling costs. The prices of lithium salt, the key material for processing LFP, extended the decline in December 2022. Another raw material, iron phosphate, also trended lower under the intensified competition in the market. In mid-January, LFP market stagnated owing to the CNY holiday and the poor demand. Some producers suspended the production for CNY holiday and maintenance. The LFP market witnessed no transactions, and the prices stabilised temporarily. In late January, LFP prices continued to decline. LFP enterprises resumed work one after another post CNY, but the sales of terminal companies plummeted throughout January. The power battery market was extremely sluggish, and the downstream companies still focused on consuming the in-plant inventories. LFP producers held a wait-and-see sentiment and were less willing to buy raw materials amid the falling prices. Demand and raw material sectors failed to provide effective support to the LFP prices.
