Second-life Application Market Stays Stable Overall, with Limited Short-term Upside and Downside Room [SMM Weekly Review]

Published: Jul 2, 2026 17:12

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This week, China's second-life application market operated smoothly overall, with prices across all categories remaining flat. Market transactions were dominated by just-in-time procurement, and the supply-demand pattern did not show significant fluctuations. Raw material trends diverged: lithium carbonate stopped falling and rebounded this week, while nickel sulphate and cobalt sulphate continued their weak, sluggish decline. However, second-life battery cell prices did not undergo noticeable adjustments accordingly. Currently, second-life product prices are already at a relatively low level, with limited downside room; meanwhile, the demand side also lacks significant incremental support and upward momentum. In the short term, with neither rise nor fall easy, prices naturally remained stable. On the supply side, quotations for new battery cells were generally stable, providing a clear price anchor for second-life A- and B-grade battery cells, and their quotations remained steady throughout. Dismantled battery cells, supported by rigid dismantling costs, saw prices stabilize in tandem, with no clear upward or downward momentum for the time being.

SMM July 2 News:

Second-life Application This Week:

This week, China’s second-life application market operated steadily overall, with prices across all categories remaining flat. Market transactions were dominated by just-in-time procurement, and the supply-demand pattern showed no significant fluctuations.

Raw material side, trends diverged: lithium carbonate stopped falling and rebounded this week, while nickel sulphate and cobalt sulphate continued their weak downward drift. However, second-life battery cell prices did not follow with significant adjustments. Currently, overall prices of second-life products have been at relatively low levels, with limited downside room; meanwhile, the demand side lacked clear incremental support and thus had no upward momentum. In the short term, prices struggled to move in either direction and naturally remained stable. On the supply side, quotations for new battery cells were generally steady, providing a clear price anchor for second-life A- and B-grade cells, with corresponding product quotations holding firm throughout. Dismantled battery cells, supported by rigid dismantling costs, saw prices stabilize as well, with no clear driving force for change for now.

In the short term, with the divergent cost-side landscape lacking clear drivers for a one-sided move, coupled with the fact that just-in-time procurement demand from energy storage remains supportive while EV-sector demand remains weak, the second-life application market is expected to continue its trend of stable prices.

SMM New Energy Research Team

Wang Cong 021-51666838

Ma Rui 021-51595780

Feng Disheng 021-51666714

Lv Yanlin 021-20707875

Lei Yue 021-20707873

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM's internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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