Lithium: China's lithium ore market was relatively quiet post the Mid-Autumn Festival, with few transactions. The bids and offers were flat compared with those before the festival. The market players were wait-and-see. It is likely that the lithium ore prices will move rangebound in the near term. For lithium carbonate, the spot prices rebounded yesterday, and the market was stagnate with few transactions. It is estimated that the lithium carbonate spot prices will remain flat in the short period.
Nickel: The demand for nickel sulfate spots was lackluster at the current stage, and the downstream consumers were wait-and-see. The nickel sulfate producers lowered the prices amidst falling nickel prices and the failing expectation of the traditional seasonal high in September. But the firm intermediates prices will offer certain support to nickel sulfate prices.
Cobalt: The slightly falling cobalt intermediates prices weighed on the sentiment of cobalt chemicals producers, and put the downstream consumers on the sidelines. Though the domestic mines tried to hold the prices firm, the market sentiment remained bearish, especially when the demand side was still ambiguous. The downstream players were passive towards the current price hike. It is likely that the cobalt sulfate and cobalt chloride prices will hover around Yuan 27,500/t and Yuan 35,000/t respectively in the near term.
Battery scrap: The lithium-ion battery scrap prices were stable yesterday, and the absolute prices of NMC and LCO black mass moved along with volatile metal salts prices. But the payables were unchanged at present. The prices of LFP black mass were flat with the pre-holiday level at around Yuan 2,800/mtu. Some buyers lowered their bids slightly when lithium prices dropped.
Repurposing: The quotations on the repurposing market were little changed yesterday. And the downstream demand is yet to flourish in the traditional seasonal high, and the transaction prices were low at present.