[SMM Analysis] November 2025 LCO: Strategic Stockpiling Supports Growth, Production Fluctuates at Highs

In November, the LCO market continued its steady growth trend, with production up 1% MoM and a significant increase of 71% YoY. The sustained production growth of LCO in Q4 is primarily due to downstream enterprises initiating strategic stockpiling operations in advance, based on expectations of tightening cobalt raw material supply and rising prices in 2026, with some orders being executed ahead of schedule, directly driving up LCO production.

From a fundamental market perspective, end-users have reached a consensus on the expectation of tighter cobalt raw material supply in the subsequent period, and stockpiling demand is expected to continue being released. LCO production in December is expected to continue fluctuating at highs, with only a slight decrease of 1% MoM. Currently, downstream battery enterprises have sufficient order reserves, and the overall industry operating rate remains at a high level, providing solid support for LCO market demand.