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China Lithium Prices Near Record as Power Cuts Squeeze Market
- Lithium carbonate has jumped to highest level since April
- Disruptions, low inventories may impact cathode makers: Rystad
Lithium ore.
Photographer: Carla Gottgens/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Prices of lithium in China are close to a record high as a power crisis in the nation’s major hub for the vital electric-vehicle battery ingredient threatens an already-tight market.
Sichuan, home to more than a fifth of China’s lithium production, extended industrial power cuts this week amid the most intense heat wave in more than a half century. The supply disruptions in the province are set to add fuel to the battery metal’s stunning rally in the past year, with lithium carbonate prices on Monday reaching the highest level since April at 484,500 yuan ($70,610) a ton.