This week, anode material prices were in a state of flux [SMM Weekly Review of Lithium Battery Anode Market]

SMM, May 29:

This week, the market price of artificial graphite remained stable. On the supply and demand front, influenced by news of tariff adjustments, there was a strong wait-and-see sentiment among upstream and downstream enterprises in the industry chain, and overall market trading activity was relatively weak. On the cost side, the price of graphitisation tolling services declined, while the price of raw coke continued to fall due to weak downstream demand. Despite the decline in costs, anode enterprises were reluctant to lower their quotes due to prolonged losses in the early stage. Currently, the price of artificial graphite is still under negotiation. Looking ahead, the cost side is expected to decline slightly further. On the supply and demand front, during the 90-day tariff adjustment cooling-off period, downstream enterprises may release their procurement demand. However, the supply side will remain relatively abundant. Therefore, it is anticipated that the price of anode materials may decline subsequently.

This week, against the backdrop of no significant fluctuations on the cost side and supply and demand front, the price of natural graphite anode materials remained stable. Looking ahead, the performance gap between artificial graphite and natural graphite anode materials is gradually narrowing. Moreover, artificial graphite exhibits significant price advantages, making it a more preferred procurement choice for downstream enterprises. Therefore, even if the favorable tariff policy may boost demand growth, the demand increase for natural graphite anodes will still be limited. Coupled with the long-standing issue of overcapacity in the industry, which has not been fundamentally resolved, it is expected that the price of natural graphite anode materials will continue to face downward pressure.

SMM New Energy Research Team

Wang Cong 021-51666838

Ma Rui 021-51595780

Feng Disheng 021-51666714

Lv Yanlin 021-20707875

Zhou Zhicheng 021-51666711

Zhang Haohan 021-51666752

Wang Zihan 021-51666914

Wang Jie 021-51595902

Xu Yang 021-51666760

Xu Mengqi 021-20707868

Hu Xuejie 021-20707858