The outlook for the spot market of scrap lithium batteries remained unfavorable this week (June 3-6, 2025) [SMM Weekly Review of Lithium Battery Recycling Market]
[SMM Weekly Review of Lithium Battery Recycling Market: The spot market for used lithium batteries remained unfavorable this week (June 3-6, 2025)]
This week, prices of products such as lithium chemicals and cobalt salts continued to decline, while nickel salt prices remained stable. Coefficients for products like ternary and LCO black mass also continued to fall this week. For LFP pole piece black mass, the lithium prices per % lithium were 2,250-2,400 yuan/mtu, and for LFP battery black mass, they were 2,050-2,200 yuan/mtu. Taking ternary black mass as an example: Currently, the nickel-cobalt coefficient for ternary pole piece black mass is 74-76%, and the lithium coefficient is 70-72%; for ternary battery black mass, the nickel-cobalt coefficient is 70-72%, and the lithium coefficient is 68-72%. Most enterprises in the market have begun to price based on different coefficients. On the demand side, most hydrometallurgy plants have chosen to operate at a semi-shutdown status amid the continuous decline in nickel, cobalt, and lithium salt prices. Most ternary and LFP hydrometallurgy plants have reduced their procurement volumes this month, only consuming basic inventory. Due to the market's pessimistic outlook on subsequent lithium salt prices, they are cautious about purchasing LFP black mass, resulting in very sluggish market transactions. Currently, procurement in May has decreased by approximately 15-20% MoM, and June is expected to remain basically flat. On the supply side, the psychological selling prices of grinding mills and traders have loosened somewhat due to the continuous decline in salt prices and the sentiment surrounding them. Black mass prices have generally followed the downward trend of salt prices, but the rate of decline remains slower than that of salt prices. Additionally, some grinding mills, as their current profit margins from black mass production are still below the surplus line, have chosen to hold back from selling, waiting for a subsequent market recovery. Market transactions are sluggish, and procurement volumes in June are expected to remain stable or slightly decrease MoM from April. On the cost side, currently, except for the top...
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