Production cuts and inventory reduction drive lithium prices up, as the anticipated shortage of mines becomes reality

Golden Ten Data Futures, May 9 — According to a May 9 research report from Greatland Futures, lithium prices broke through 200,000 this week, and disturbances on the supply side have not been fully resolved. Although Zimbabwe has permitted exports at the policy level, due to earlier process reviews and local work efficiency issues, there has not yet been bulk shipment of lithium concentrate; under a neutral outlook, lithium concentrates from Zimbabwe are expected to arrive at various refineries only in mid-July. This means that lithium ore supply in May and June will be extremely tight, which also validates the significant weekly decline in spodumene production, while Zimbabwean lithium sulfate is currently only being shipped in small batches.On the demand side, automakers launched new models intensively at the end of April, and orders in May are expected to continue recovering. As the fundamental driver, sales of new energy vehicles are forecast to rebound. Coupled with the higher-than-expected electricity loading, strong exports, and sustained momentum in energy storage, both battery and cathode material production in May are seeing high growth month-over-month. Therefore, after entering May, close attention should be paid to the supply-demand gap caused by the delivery pace issues in Zimbabwe.