[SMM Weekly Review] Cobalt sulphate prices stabilised this week

This week, cobalt sulphate prices stabilized overall, with market transaction prices for new goods remaining around 5-5.2 yuan/mt. No higher transaction prices were heard of for the time being. On the supply side, smelters are currently refusing to budge on prices, and some traders have limited old stock, leading to price increases. On the demand side, downstream demand has diverged. Ternary cathode precursor orders have not shown significant improvement, and buyers are adopting a wait-and-see approach, focusing on digesting previous inventory. The intended purchase price remains around 46,000-47,000 yuan/mt, with pressure existing at 47,000 yuan/mt and above. Cobalt tetroxide and traditional chemical enterprises currently have better economic viability, with some enterprises making purchases in the market. Refined cobalt purchases remain suspended due to poor economic viability. Overall, the market situation this week is roughly consistent with last week. It is expected that under the influence of rising raw material costs, cobalt sulphate prices may continue to maintain a strong trend in the short term. However, during this process, it is still necessary to observe the improvement in downstream ternary cathode precursor demand.

SMM New Energy Research Team

Wang Cong 021-51666838

Ma Rui 021-51595780

Feng Disheng 021-51666714

Lv Yanlin 021-20707875

Xiao Wenhao 021-51666872

Zhou Zhicheng 021-51666711