This Week, the Second-Life Application Market Was Generally Stable, while Ternary Products Weakened Slightly [SMM Weekly Review]

Published: Aug 13, 2026 16:57

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This week, the second-life application market operated steadily overall. Ternary product prices weakened slightly, while quotations for other categories remained basically stable. On July 30, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology abolished the relevant second-life application policies and standards, and 100 second-life battery producers were removed from the compliance list. The industry entered a period of policy digestion, and the market's operating logic changed. Cost side, raw material price trends diverged: lithium carbonate edged up, cobalt sulphate continued to grind lower, and nickel sulphate was broadly stable. The raw material side had a limited impact on second-life costs. Supply side, as the policy took effect, inventory held by former second-life battery producers could no longer circulate under the "second-life" label, and the pace of flows to the recycling segment accelerated noticeably. Some enterprises offloaded goods at low prices to recover funds, putting some pressure on market prices. Demand side, core downstream applications such as e-bikes were explicitly prohibited by the policy, so second-life demand contracted directly. Wait-and-see sentiment was strong in sectors such as telecom backup power; downstream purchase willingness was generally low; and overall market transactions were relatively subdued. Looking ahead, the short-term market is expected to remain mainly stable. Under inventory diversion pressure, ternary products still have room to edge down slightly. The pace of detailed policy rollout and enforcement intensity will be key to the subsequent market trend.

SMM, August 13:

Second-life Application This Week:

The second-life application market operated steadily overall this week, with ternary product prices edging lower and quotations for other categories remaining basically stable. On July 30, the MIIT abolished policy standards related to second-life applications, and 100 second-life battery producers were removed from the compliance list. The industry entered a period of policy digestion, and market operating logic shifted. Cost side, raw material price trends diverged: lithium carbonate edged up, cobalt sulphate continued to grind lower, and nickel sulphate was broadly stable. The raw material side had limited impact on second-life costs. Supply side, affected by policy implementation, inventories of former second-life enterprises could no longer circulate under the "second-life" label, and the pace of flows to the recycling side accelerated noticeably. Some enterprises dumped goods at low prices to recoup funds, creating certain pressure on market prices. Demand side, core downstream applications such as e-bikes were explicitly banned by the policy; second-life demand contracted directly; wait-and-see sentiment was strong in areas such as communications backup power; downstream purchase willingness was generally low; and overall market transactions were relatively subdued. Looking ahead, the market will remain mainly stable in the short term. Ternary products still have room to edge down under inventory diversion pressure. The pace of introduction of detailed policy rules and the intensity of enforcement will be key factors affecting subsequent trends.

SMM New Energy Research Team

Wang Cong 021-51666838

Ma Rui 021-51595780

Feng Disheng 021-51666714

Lyu 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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