[SMM Weekly Review] Spot Prices of Cobalt Intermediate Products Remained Firm This Week

This week, spot prices of cobalt intermediate products remained strong, with mainstream brand prices in the domestic market reaching around $13.5/lb. Supply side, major miners refused to budge on prices, while traders continued to raise their offers. Demand side, smelters maintained just-in-time procurement under the pressure of high raw material costs. Some companies reported that due to the rapid rise in cobalt intermediate product prices earlier, the price spread between raw materials and finished products became too wide, prompting them to purchase cobalt salt as a substitute for intermediate products. Overall, affected by the DRC's delayed policies, China's cobalt intermediate products will continue to face raw material shortages, with upward momentum in prices. However, attention should be paid to the potential suppression of downstream demand caused by rising raw material prices.

SMM New Energy Research Team

Cong Wang 021-51666838

Rui Ma 021-51595780

Disheng Feng 021-51666714

Yanlin Lü 021-20707875

Wenhao Xiao 021-51666872

Zhicheng Zhou 021-51666711