【SMM New Energy News】MIIT to Accelerate Drafting 15th Five-Year Plan for Intelligent Connected NEVs

[SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Drifted Lower on July 28] SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate spot prices drifted lower from the previous working day. In the futures market, the lithium carbonate 2609 contract opened high at 146,600 yuan/mt today. After the opening, bulls briefly pushed prices, shooting the contract up to 147,700 yuan/mt, before encountering concentrated selling pressure from bears that triggered a rapid plunge. During the morning session, prices kept falling below the average price line (146,600 yuan/mt), hitting a low of 142,000 yuan/mt. Around midday, bulls and bears wrestled repeatedly within the 142,000–144,000 yuan range. In the afternoon, bulls lacked momentum for a rebound; after a brief rise, prices oscillated and pulled back again, then consolidated at lows near 143,500 yuan/mt toward the close. The contract finally closed down 1.75% at 143,500 yuan/mt, with open interest decreasing by 5,649 lots. In the spot market, as prices drifted lower, purchasing sentiment recovered among some downstream material plants that had been on the sidelines, with the sub-145,000 yuan/mt level acting as an anchor for rigid demand purchases. Upstream lithium chemical plants continued to hold prices firm. Overall, market inquiries and actual transactions were relatively active.

[Summary of Lithium Carbonate Enterprises' Maintenance Plans, August-September] Recently, several lithium chemical plants in China have successively announced their shutdown maintenance arrangements for the period from August to September. In terms of the reasons for maintenance, they fall mainly into three categories. The first is equipment technological transformation, with a combined impact on production of approximately 3,000 mt. The second is production constraints caused by external power circuit maintenance, with a combined impact on production ranging from 2,000 to 2,500 mt. The third is routine maintenance, with a combined impact of about 4,000 mt in August, of which some production line maintenance will continue into September, expected to result in an impact of about 2,500 mt on September production. Combining the impacts of all types of maintenance, the total affected production in August is approximately 9,000 to 9,500 mt, while in September it is approximately 2,500 mt. Overall, the recent concentrated maintenance will cause a temporary reduction on the supply side. SMM will continue to track the pace and progress of subsequent production resumptions.