[SMM Weekly Review] The spot price of cobalt intermediate products continued to rise this week

Published: Aug 14, 2025 18:09

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[SMM Weekly Review] This week, the spot price of cobalt intermediate products continued to rise, with the lowest market quote reaching around $13.0/lb and a small volume of transactions occurring at $13.15/lb. On the supply side, mainstream miners maintained their refusal to budge on prices, while traders also held firm on prices and controlled the pace of shipments, with some traders quoting prices around $13.5/lb. On the demand side, smelters maintained just-in-time procurement, but due to losses, transactions were still dominated by small volumes. Overall, influenced by the DRC's policy extension, China's cobalt intermediate products will still face raw material shortages in the future, and there is upward momentum in prices. However, attention should be paid to the suppression of downstream demand caused by the rise in raw material prices during this process.

This week, the spot price of cobalt intermediate products continued to rise, with the lowest market quote reaching around $13.0/lb and a small volume of transactions occurring at $13.15/lb. On the supply side, mainstream miners maintained their refusal to budge on prices, while traders also held firm on prices and controlled the pace of shipments, with some traders quoting prices around $13.5/lb. On the demand side, smelters maintained just-in-time procurement, but due to losses, transactions were still dominated by small volumes. Overall, influenced by the DRC's extension policy, China's cobalt intermediate products will still face raw material shortages in the future, and prices have upward momentum. However, during this process, attention should be paid to the inhibition of downstream demand caused by the rise in raw material prices.

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

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