According to the Commodity Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the price of lithium carbonate has continued to fluctuate at the bottom recently. As of June 17th, the benchmark price of domestic battery grade lithium carbonate trading society was 60366 yuan/ton, a decrease of 5.23% from the same period last month at 63733 yuan/ton and a decrease of 42.73% from the same period last year at 1054 yuan/ton; The benchmark price for domestic industrial grade lithium carbonate trading is 58566 yuan/ton, a decrease of 6.14% from the same period last month at 62466 yuan/ton and a decrease of 42% from the same period last year at 10100 yuan/ton.
Supply side continues to grow
Domestically, the extraction of lithium from Qinghai Salt Lake has entered the peak production season, coupled with the restart of some lithium salt factories undergoing maintenance. Enterprises such as Salt Lake Corporation and Zangge Mining continue to release new production capacity, and domestic supply pressure continues.
In terms of imports: Overseas shipment data indicates that the import volume of lithium carbonate may decrease in June, but low-cost imported resources still exert pressure on the domestic market.
Demand side power and energy storage growth both slow down
As the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in China reaches a high level, the growth rate begins to decline. In May, the retail sales of new energy vehicles in China increased by 28% year-on-year, a decrease of 17 percentage points from the first quarter. The price war among car companies has led to a low willingness of battery factories to purchase, only maintaining essential purchases.
In terms of energy storage, the US tariff issue has been fluctuating. In May, due to the “rush to install”, the shipment of energy storage batteries increased by 45%. Although the installed capacity is strong, there are still variables in the long run.
The lithium carbonate data analyst from Shengyi Society believes that although the excess amount of lithium carbonate is gradually narrowing, there is still pressure on the supply side, and there is a trend of contraction on the demand side. It is expected that the price of lithium carbonate will still have no rebound momentum and continue to fluctuate on the cost line. Specific market changes still need to be monitored.