According to the monitoring of the commodity market analysis system of Business Society, the prices of industrial grade and battery grade lithium carbonate continued to decline in November. On November 30th, the average domestic mixed price of industrial grade lithium carbonate was 123400 yuan/ton, a decrease of 22.49% compared to the average price of 159200 yuan/ton on November 1st. On November 30th, the average domestic mixed price of battery grade lithium carbonate was 134000 yuan/ton, a decrease of 21.08% compared to the average price of 169800 yuan/ton on November 1st.

By observing market changes, it can be seen that the supply and demand pattern of lithium carbonate market remained weak in early November, with prices showing a trend of continuous decline. In terms of supply, the production lines of some large factories have recovered from maintenance, with a significant increase in production scheduling and operating rates, and an increase in the supply of lithium carbonate in the market. Combined with the high prices of lithium carbonate in the early stage, many enterprises have accumulated a large amount of lithium carbonate inventory. In order to reduce costs and recover funds, enterprises gradually clear their inventory, leading to a continuous increase in supply. The spot market, on the other hand, is mainly dominated by long order buying and selling, while the volume of individual orders is relatively small, resulting in a continuous decline in prices.

In terms of demand, the purchasing willingness of downstream markets is still not high, mainly based on long-term contracts and customer supply guarantee, and the purchasing willingness for individual orders is relatively low. Although the electric vehicle market is still growing, the growth rate has slowed down, coupled with weak demand growth in the energy storage market, resulting in lower than expected demand for lithium carbonate, further lowering prices.

In late November, the decline in lithium carbonate prices widened. On the one hand, it was affected by the significant decline in futures prices, and on the other hand, the market supply and demand imbalance led to a downward trend in prices. The supply side saw a surge of 84.5% to 16791 tons of lithium carbonate exported from Chile to China in October, leading to a continuous increase in lithium carbonate supply. As the end of the month approaches, the supply side of the market is facing even more difficulties. It is understood that a large salt lake factory has announced a release of 8000 tons of lithium carbonate. The price will be settled based on the average price of industrial grade lithium carbonate from November 28th to December 25th, and a certain discount will be given based on the purchase volume, which will continue to put pressure on the price of lithium carbonate.

In terms of demand, downstream energy storage demand remained weak in late November, while positive electrode material companies remained in a wait-and-see attitude. In the downward trend of prices, there is currently no willingness to buy individual orders, and market transactions continue to be lackluster. Although trading companies have significantly lowered the sales price of lithium carbonate, market feedback shows that transactions are still relatively small. In addition, the recent decline in the premium between lithium carbonate spot and 2401 contract futures has made it difficult for some lithium carbonate trading companies to significantly discount sales, and their trading volume is also difficult to improve.

The lithium hydroxide market is operating weakly, with upstream lithium carbonate prices continuing to decline in November and upstream spodumene concentrate prices operating weakly. Cost support for the lithium hydroxide market is weakened, coupled with poor performance on the demand side. Market transactions are mainly long-term contract orders, and the atmosphere for bulk cargo transactions is weak. Downstream demand for high nickel materials is weak, and the enthusiasm for inquiry procurement is not high. The cautious and urgent need to follow up is the main trend. The trading atmosphere in the lithium hydroxide market is flat, The market is sluggish.

The downstream price of lithium iron phosphate has mainly experienced a narrow decline. In November, the price of lithium iron phosphate fell by 15.34%, with a decrease of 12000 yuan/ton. Currently, downstream restocking is on demand, with poor demand and average stocking willingness. Upstream lithium carbonate experienced a significant decline in November, with limited cost support, sufficient supply, and slow shipment, putting overall market pressure on operation.

In terms of futures, the basis of lithium carbonate spot futures has widened in mid November, and some traders have engaged in basis trading, reducing prices and selling spot inventory, which has to some extent triggered bearish sentiment. Subsequently, lithium carbonate futures prices plummeted multiple times, hitting the limit down twice and continuously breaking new historical lows. On November 30th, the opening price of the LC2401 contract for lithium carbonate futures on the Guangzhou Futures Exchange was 110000 yuan/ton, with a highest price of 111350 yuan/ton and a closing price of 106200 yuan/ton. The daily decline was 5.81%, with a trading volume of 579000 lots and a position of 145034 lots.

According to lithium carbonate analysts from Business Society, the overall inventory of the lithium carbonate industry is still high, and the market circulation is still much higher than the actual downstream demand. The pattern of strong supply and weak demand is maintained, and some smelting enterprises find it difficult to ship, with prices continuously declining. In addition, some traders have engaged in low price selling behavior, which has amplified the bearish sentiment in the market. It is expected that the price of lithium carbonate will continue to decline under pressure in the short term.