Dear User, As a key intermediate product in the lithium industry chain, lithium sulfate serves as a primary raw material for producing core lithium chemicals such as battery-grade lithium carbonate and battery-grade lithium hydroxide. Its supply and price influence the costs of downstream lithium battery materials and market operations. Currently, the lithium sulfate market lacks open and transparent representative price references. International trade and procurement pricing largely rely on bilateral negotiations, leading to issues such as information asymmetry and delayed price transmission. With lithium sulfate production from African lithium producers, represented by the Zimbabwe region, commencing and gradually entering the market, SMM has compiled and launched the " Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China) Price " to promote standardized and transparent pricing for African lithium sulfate and enhance the efficiency of the industry chain. This price aims to objectively reflect the market conditions of African lithium sulfate arriving at main Chinese ports. It will provide a reliable price benchmark for producers, traders, downstream enterprises, and financial institutions, supporting the standardized development and price discovery of the global lithium resources market. SMM's "Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China)" was officially launched today (January 21, 2026) . Details are as follows: Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China), Specification: Li₂SO₄·H₂O content ≥80% Product Name: Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China) Quality Standard: Li₂SO₄·H₂O content ≥80% Definition: CIF main Chinese ports Unit: $/mt Minimum Trading Volume: 60 mt Delivery Period: 2 months Release Time: Weekdays, 12:00 Beijing Time Payment Terms: Letter of credit, telegraphic transfer, or documents against payment other payment terms require separate negotiation. Welcome more relevant enterprises in the industry chain to participate and support SMM in better serving new energy industry chain enterprises. Shirley Wang 021-5166-6838 wangcong@smm.cn Thomas Feng 021-5166-6714 fengdisheng@smm.cn Sylvia Wang 021-5166-6914 wangzihan@smm.cn Jessica Wang 021-5159-5902 wangjie@smm.cn Faith Zhang 021-5166-6878 faithzhang@smm.cn Shanghai Metals Market New Energy Research Team January 21, 2026

To Our Valued Users, Hello! As a key intermediate product in the lithium industry chain, lithium sulfate serves as a primary raw material for producing core lithium salts such as battery-grade lithium carbonate and battery-grade lithium hydroxide. Its supply and pricing directly impact the cost of downstream lithium battery materials and overall market operations. Currently, the lithium sulfate market lacks open and transparent representative price benchmarks, with international trade and procurement pricing largely reliant on bilateral negotiations, leading to issues such as information asymmetry and delays in price transmission. With lithium sulfate production from relevant African lithium producers, represented by the Zimbabwe region, commencing and gradually entering the market, SMM has developed and is now launching the "Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China) Price" to promote the standardization and transparency of African lithium sulfate pricing and enhance the efficiency of industrial chain collaboration. This initiative aims to objectively reflect the market conditions of African lithium sulfate arriving at major Chinese ports, providing a reliable price benchmark for producers, traders, downstream enterprises, and financial institutions, thereby supporting the standardized development and price discovery of the global lithium resource market. Release time：2026.Jan.22 The price will be updated every business day at 12:00 Beijing Time for market reference. Product Name: Africa Lithium Sulfate (CIF China) Quality Standard: Li₂SO₄·H₂O content ≥ 80% Definition: CIF major Chinese ports Unit: USD/ton Minimum Transaction Volume: 60 tons Delivery Period: 2 months Release Time: Every business day at 12:00 Beijing Time Payment Terms: Letter of Credit (L/C), Telegraphic Transfer (T/T), or Documents Against Payment (D/P). Other payment terms are subject to negotiation. We welcome more relevant enterprises across the industrial chain to participate and support SMM in better serving the new energy industry. Shirley Wang 021-51666838 wangcong@smm.cn Thomas Feng 021-51666714 fengdisheng@smm.cn Sylvia Wang 021-51666914 wangzihan@smm.cn Jessica Wang 021-51595902 wangjie@smm.cn Faith Zhang 021-51666878 faithzhang@smm.cn Shanghai Metals Market New Energy Research Team January 20, 2026

SMM Clarification Statement SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "SMM" or "the Company"), as a professional spot market price reporting agency and information provider, has recently noticed the circulation of false information regarding the fairness of SMM's price assessment. To avoid market misunderstandings, maintain a healthy and transparent market environment, and protect the Company's legitimate rights and interests, SMM hereby makes the following solemn clarification and statement: I. The Difference Between Spot Prices and Futures Prices is a Normal Reflection of Market Mechanisms According to basic economic principles, spot prices reflect the immediate supply-demand relationship and deliverable transaction conditions of the underlying asset, while futures prices reflect market expectations for future supply and demand, including factors such as capital cost and carrying costs. Both follow the principle of "convergence at maturity," meaning that futures prices gradually converge towards spot prices as the contract expiration date approaches. Therefore, during the life of the contract, the difference between spot prices and futures prices, especially with far-month contracts, is a normal phenomenon under the market pricing mechanism. II. Historical Data Proves the Rationality of the Price Spread Structure To objectively present the facts, SMM has made a price spread analysis chart based on publicly available market data: The chart clearly shows that from September 2023 to 2025, the monthly price spread between the SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate average price and the GFEX lithium carbonate futures contract prices fluctuated between positive and negative territory, always remaining within a reasonable range, and exhibited a significant convergence trend as the contract expiration date approached. This fully aligns with the market rule of futures and spot price convergence. Comparing a certain periods' futures prices (especially those of far-month most-traded contracts) with spot assessment prices and concluding that there is a "consistent significant deviation" is fundamentally flawed in methodology and can easily mislead market judgment. Any behavior that selectively highlights short-term trends in the price spread without considering the broader context is partial and irresponsible, failing to reflect the overall market situation. III. Recent Market Risk Control Measures Recently, to maintain the stable operation of the lithium carbonate futures market and prevent potential risks, the Guangzhou Futures Exchange, in accordance with its risk management rules, issued multiple notifications consecutively between November and December 2025, implementing a series of risk control measures for relevant contracts, including adjustments to transaction fee standards and trading limits. These measures represent the exchange's commitment to fulfill its self-regulatory duties in accordance with the law during specific market periods, aiming to promote the steady development of the market. IV. The Emergence, Nature, and Harm of False Information It is noteworthy that during this sensitive period, when the aforementioned risk control measures were being intensively implemented, a significant amount of false information began circulating on the Internet. While such information varies in content, it shares an identical core narrative: False claims have been made that SMM’s prices "consistently and significantly deviate from fair value and futures prices" and that "there are illegal benefit-related connections with certain institutions". These claims are entirely groundless. The timing and manner of their dissemination indicate that their purpose is not professional discussion but rather an attempt to exert improper pressure on SMM by confusing the price logic of spot and futures markets, interfere with the neutrality of spot price assessments, and consequently potentially mislead market expectations and disrupt the normal relationship between futures and spot prices. SMM hereby solemnly declares that SMM is always committed to price discovery in the spot market, does not participate in any futures market trading operations, and resolutely maintains market order. V. The Compliance, Neutrality, and Supervision Mechanisms of SMM's Price Assessment As a professional market price assessment agency, SMM always adheres to the principles of neutrality, objectivity, and fairness. SMM's price assessment methodology strictly follows the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) "Principles for Financial Benchmarks" and is subject to audits by independent third-party audit firms. In terms of internal governance, SMM has established a comprehensive firewall system to ensure that personnel and management involved in the price assessment process do not hold any related futures or spot positions, thereby eliminating conflicts of interest at an institutional level. SMM also has no history of any penalties from securities regulatory authorities for violations. We consistently maintain an open attitude towards market supervision based on facts. VI. Appeal to the Public SMM strongly condemns the recent malicious fabrication and dissemination of false information in the market, which damages SMM's commercial reputation and attempts to disrupt the order of the futures and spot markets, and has initiated legal proceedings to protect its rights. Currently, SMM is comprehensively and continuously collecting and preserving evidence related to the infringements. For suspected infringing acts, the Company will take all legal measures, including but not limited to reporting to relevant regulatory authorities and filing complaints with relevant online platforms, to resolutely pursue the legal liability of the infringing parties. SMM reserves the right to pursue all legal consequences against the relevant responsible parties. We once again call on all market participants to enhance their legal awareness and professional discernment capabilities, obtain information from authoritative channels, analyze the market rationally, resolutely resist and refuse to spread any unverified and unfounded rumors, and jointly maintain a fair, orderly, and healthy development environment for the industry chain. SMM Information & Technology Co., Ltd. Dec 26, 2025