Spot lithium carbonate prices continued to decline this week. The average SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate price fell from 155,500 yuan/mt at the beginning of the week (February 2) to 144,000 yuan/mt on Thursday (February 5), with a cumulative weekly drop of 11,500 yuan/mt. The average industrial-grade lithium carbonate price dropped from 152,000 yuan/mt to 140,500 yuan/mt, also down 11,500 yuan/mt for the week. Futures market performance was weak, with prices repeatedly hitting the lower limit during trading sessions. The price range of the most-traded contract further declined from 132,400–152,800 yuan/mt at the start of the week to 132,300–147,300 yuan/mt.
Market transactions reflected a standoff between "upstream reluctance to sell and downstream buying the dip." Upstream lithium chemical plants showed clear sentiment to hold prices firm during the price decline, with a generally low willingness to sell spot orders. Downstream material plants, currently in the procurement cycle for Chinese New Year stockpiling, widely adopted a strategy of buying the dip, with inquiry and transaction activity noticeably picking up when prices hit relatively low levels during the week. As February stockpiling by downstream material plants nears completion, market transactions are expected to become somewhat more sluggish next week compared to the previous period.
