China April Lithium Carbonate Import Volumes And Prices Both Crashed From March, Despite A Surge From A Year Ago

Published: May 24, 2023 14:53 (GMT+8)

Source: SMM

Save

SHANGHAI, May 24 (SMM) – Customs data showed that China's lithium carbonate imports were 11,313 mt in April.

SHANGHAI, May 24 (SMM) – Customs data showed that China's lithium carbonate imports were 11,313 mt in April. The figure was 96% higher than in the same period last year, but 35% lower than in March.

Imports from Chile decreased 34% month-on-month, while those from Argentina fell 42% month-on-month.

The average import price was $55,116/mt in April, a decrease of 10% month-on-month, but up 54% year-on-year. The average import price from Chile stood at $57,941/mt, down 10% MoM.

71% of imported lithium carbonate went to Shanghai, 14% to Fujian, 8% to Jiangsu, and 4% to Guangdong.

From January to April, lithium carbonate imports totalled 50,048 mt, an increase of 50% year-on-year.

More popular news

Goldman Sachs Cuts Copper Price Forecast Amid Slowing Western Manufacturing, But Bank Of America Bets On Higher Copper Prices, Citing A Surge In Demand From China

Key Chinese Economic Data Are Released, Including Real Estate Investment, Industrial Added Value and Consumer Goods Retail Sales

China To Actively Expand Domestic Effective Demand And Boost New Energy Vehicle Sales, National Development And Reform Commission Says

Goldman Sachs, Barclays warn: Fed will not cut interest rates this year

EIA Cuts Brent and WTI Oil Price Forecasts for 2023 as Recession Fears, Inflation and Banking Crisis Overshadow OPEC's Production Cuts

China's National Bureau of Statistics says there is still room for improvement in residents' purchasing power and willingness to spend

UN and IMF Raise Forecasts for China GDP, Regulators Promise Measures to Boost Growth

Asian Buyers Snap up Cheaper Russian Oil, Putting Oil-Producing Countries in the Middle East and West Africa under Huge Pressure

SMM Comment: SHFE and LME Base Metals Mostly Fall, Oil Rise on Supply Jitters after Saudi Arabia Energy Minister Warns He Would Make Short Sellers Suffer, Dollar Falls on US Debt Ceiling Issue

Don't Be Misguided by Soaring China Lithium Carbonate Imports in April on YoY Basis, Import Volumes and Prices both Crashed from March

Chinese Lithium Carbonate Smelters Have Smaller Appetite for Overseas Spodumene Concentrate, April Customs Data Shows

Lithium Carbonate Price Rally Was Not Driven By Robust Demand Recovery

Plummeting Global Demand Sends LME Copper Contango To 20-Year High

Dollar, Oil, Gold, Base Metals, Ferrous Metals All Go Down, EIA Cuts Oil Price Forecast

SMM Morning Comments (May 23): Base Metals Closed Mostly with Losses on US Macro Headwinds

Balance of M2, M1 and M0 All Rise at the End of April, China’s Central Bank Says

India to become Europe’s top supplier of refined oil products after massive purchases of Russian oil

Goldman Sachs: China will be the only major economy with positive growth this year, bullish bets on new energy vehicles and biotechnology in the long run

CITI Research Lowers Price Forecast for Nickel, Aluminium and Zinc in 2023-2024 But Bets on Higher Copper Prices

Import/Export

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

6 hours ago

[SMM Analysis] Two Suspensions in Two Months: Sigma Lithium Permits Suspended Again, Expansion Affected

6 hours ago

[Lake Resources’ Kachi Project Receives Environmental Approval]

On September 29, Lake Resources announced that its Kachi lithium brine project in Argentina has received an Environmental Impact Declaration (DIA) issued by the Mining Ministry of Catamarca Province. The DIA requires a 200-meter surface exclusion zone around the lagoon shoreline. The company said it is updating mineral resource estimates accordingly, but existing ore reserve estimates and wellfield development plans are not expected to be affected. The project uses Lilac Solutions’ direct lithium extraction (DLE) technology and is designed to reinject more than 95% of processed brine into the native aquifer, isolated from freshwater resources, and to eliminate traditional evaporation ponds. Kachi Phase 1 has a designed capacity of 25,000 tonnes per annum of lithium carbonate equivalent (LCE), and the company’s planned Phase 2 scheme aims to further increase capacity to 50,000 tpa. Following environmental approval, the project is entering the front-end engineering and design (FEED) stage, advancing engineering definition, long-lead equipment procurement, construction planning, and commercial negotiations, in preparation for a subsequent final investment decision (FID). The company also committed US$1 million to the Catamarca Province Mining Concession Trust Fund to support local community infrastructure.

6 hours ago

[China Union Holdings: Canada’s FIRES to Further Review Lithium Brine Investment]

On September 29, China Union Holdings announced that, as previously announced on August 14, it had received a notice from Canada’s foreign investment review and economic security authority (“FIRES”), which considered that the company’s investment in the Arizaro lithium brine project could affect Canada’s national security and might therefore initiate a further review within 45 days from the date of the notice. On September 29, the company received a notice from FIRES under Section 25.3 of the Investment Canada Act, notifying it of FIRES’s intention to conduct a further review of the transaction. The company and the seller are continuing to communicate with FIRES and are considering feasible options or remedies.

6 hours ago