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ASCC 2026 SMM 8th Automotive Supply Chain Conference & Industry Collaboration Forum

2026 SMM (3rd) South China Non-Ferrous Metals Annual Conference

2026 SMM Australia Metals & Mining Investment Seminar

2026 SMM London Metals Forum

2026 SMM AICE Asia Aluminum Conference

ASEAN Solar Storage Summit 2026

SMM CCAE 2026 15th COPPER INDUSTRY ANNUAL CONFERENCE

Indonesia Critical Minerals Conference & Expo 2027

Shanghai Metals Expo 2026

SMM (11th) Annual Nickel Conference 2026 - Ni Cr Mn Stainless Steel Event

This week, the second-life battery market operated steadily overall, with limited fluctuations in quotations across categories and a generally subdued trading atmosphere. Cost side, raw materials weakened overall, with divergent trends across categories. This week, lithium carbonate prices saw a notable decline, cobalt sulphate broke its previous stable trend and began to pull back, while nickel sulphate prices remained basically stable, edging down only slightly. Cost support from raw materials continued to weaken, but due to the lag in industry chain transmission, this week's raw material fluctuations have not yet been significantly passed through to second-life finished products. Supply side, the pace of shipments continued to recover, with circulation order gradually returning to normal. Market shipments extended the previous recovery trend, and as industry compliance gradually improved, the circulation pace of second-life supply steadily returned to normal. Battery cell supply across categories recovered to normal levels, with no extreme situations such as concentrated releases or supply tightening. Demand side, category divergence persisted. LFP battery cell demand remained stable and continued to serve as the core support of the market; ternary battery cell demand remained mediocre, with weak downstream purchase willingness and lacklustre follow-through in transactions. Meanwhile, the trend of dismantled supply flowing to the recycling segment continued, exerting some pressure on second-life market prices. Prices of dismantled products still have downside room, but supported by rigid demand, the overall stable pattern of the short-term market has not yet been broken. Overall, the current market faces both supporting and pressuring factors. Weakening costs and demand divergence are creating price pressure, while rigid demand is underpinning the market bottom. The second-life battery market is expected to maintain a stable operating trend in the short term.

Second-life application market remained stable this week, with category divergence and dismantled products under pressure [SMM weekly review]

[SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review: Artificial Graphite Prices Held Steady with Expectations of Increase This Week, Natural Graphite Remained Weak] September 10 news, this week, artificial graphite anode prices remained stable.

This week, artificial graphite remained stable awaiting price increases, while natural graphite continued its weak trend [SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review]

[SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review: Graphitisation Tolling Prices Hold Steady, Supply-Demand Tight Balance to Sustain Consolidation on a Strong Note] September 10 news: This week, graphitisation tolling prices remained stable.

Graphitisation tolling service prices hold steady; supply-demand tight balance to keep market consolidating on a strong note [SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review]

[SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review: Low-Sulphur Petroleum Coke Continued to Rise This Week, Needle Coke Remained in Stalemate] September 10: This week, the industry average price of oil-based green needle coke remained at 7,500 yuan/mt; the industry average price of low-sulphur petroleum coke was slightly raised to 4,766 yuan/mt.

This week, low-sulphur petroleum coke continued its upward trend, while needle coke remained in a stalemate [SMM Lithium Battery Anode Raw Material Market Weekly Review]

Lithium Carbonate Market Weekly Summary: Spot lithium carbonate prices drifted lower during Sep 7-10 [SMM Weekly Review]

Today, SMM battery-grade lithium carbonate spot prices drifted lower compared with the previous trading day. The lithium carbonate 2701 contract opened higher at 142,300 yuan/mt today. After the open, bulls pushed prices up quickly to around 143,800 yuan/mt, but the level did not hold, and the contract then consolidated lower under selling pressure from bears. Near midday, prices accelerated downward, hitting a low of 139,500 yuan/mt. In the afternoon, bulls organized a rebound from low levels, and prices recovered to near the average price line. In late trading, prices weakened again, closing near 141,300 yuan/mt, down 0.52% at 141,300 yuan/mt. Open interest increased by 3,280 lots.

This week, China's lithium carbonate production gradually climbed as lithium chemical plants using spodumene resumed production after maintenance and raw materials arrived at ports, while production from other raw material sources remained relatively stable. From the perspective of actual market transactions and inventory, upstream lithium chemical plants showed increasingly strong sentiment to hold prices firm and hold back from selling spot orders as spot prices drifted lower. Long-term contracts and additional volumes under long-term contracts were shipped gradually, and inventory destocked slightly. Downstream cathode material plants, battery cell manufacturers, and other downstream players are in the period of pre-stocking for September and October, adopting a dip-buying strategy. They showed strong willingness to purchase and stockpile near 140,000 yuan/mt, with relatively active buying, so inventory accumulated slightly. Traders saw a significant inventory drawdown as upstream spot order selling slowed and downstream players bought the dip to stockpile.

SMM Daily Review: Spot Lithium Carbonate Prices Drifted Lower on September 10

The Beijing municipal government issued its 15th Five-Year plan for high-tech industries on Sept 9, proposing to advance technical verification, demonstration and industrialization of multiple new energy storage routes including solid-state batteries, and to accelerate breakthroughs in all-solid-state and high-performance hydrogen fuel cells for vehicles. The plan targets lifting the NEV share to 70 percent, cultivating core projects in power batteries, drive motors and smart chassis, and building supporting capabilities in automotive chips and smart cockpits. It also promotes recycling of used power batteries in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, and aims for national-level green factories to account for 50 percent of manufacturing output by 2030.

[Solid-state: Beijing 15th Five-Year plan pushes solid-state battery industrialization]

HiNa Battery signed a strategic cooperation agreement with South Korea's VOLTA on Sept 2, advancing from a prior 15MWh storage project to a five-year, 10GWh long-term supply deal. HiNa will lead cell technology and manufacturing, VOLTA will handle system integration and Korean market promotion, and Kwangwoon University will provide R&D and testing support, covering utility, C&I and residential storage scenarios. Since Sept 1, sodium-ion batteries have had their own customs commodity code with a consumption tax exemption through end-2028, making this deal a milestone for China's sodium-ion industry entering global mainstream markets.

[Na-ion: HiNa Battery signs 5-year 10GWh supply deal with Korea's VOLTA]

According to Nord Precious Metals on September 9, the company announced new drilling results from its high-grade Castle East silver project in Ontario, Canada. Wedge hole CS-26-140W1 intersected three silver-cobalt mineralized zones between depths of 404.20 metres and 463.60 metres.
The upper 2-metre interval graded 4,683 g/t silver and 0.53% cobalt, including a 0.3-metre section grading 20,676 g/t silver and 1.16% cobalt. Another 0.3-metre interval returned 2.32% cobalt. A lower 0.9-metre interval graded 4,540 g/t silver and 0.24% cobalt, including 0.3 metres at 0.72% cobalt.
The company said the results provide additional high-grade silver-cobalt mineralization data for the Castle East geological model and will support further evaluation of mineralized continuity and structural relationships. The reported intervals represent core lengths, while true widths have not yet been determined. The project remains at the exploration stage and has not yet established any quantifiable additional cobalt supply.

Nord Precious Metals Reports New Castle East Drill Results, Confirming Multiple Silver-Cobalt Mineralized Intervals

According to overseas media reports on September 9, Eurasian Resources Group (ERG) said its Metalkol copper-cobalt project near Kolwezi in the Democratic Republic of Congo has once again been occupied by illegal miners since August 21, with armed individuals and unauthorized miners reported at the site. ERG estimates that around 700 tonnes of tailings are currently being excavated and transported away by truck each day, with some of the material reportedly sent to nearby processing facilities.
Due to security risks, Metalkol is currently unable to access parts of the affected area. ERG said a similar incident occurred earlier this year and was subsequently brought under control, making the latest occupation a renewed disruption. Metalkol holds rights to reprocess more than 100 million tonnes of historical tailings and is one of the DRC’s key copper-cobalt projects. Congolese mining authorities are aware of the situation and said measures are being taken to seek a long-term solution. If the disruption continues, it could affect control over the project’s tailings resources, normal operations and future cobalt production plans.

ERG’s Metalkol Copper-Cobalt Project Hit Again by Illegal Mining, About 700 Tonnes of Tailings Removed Daily

Ukrainian First Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal told a visiting German green-tech delegation on September 9 that pre-war generation capacity of more than 50 GW had fallen to under 10 GW following last winter's attacks, and that the country's strategic goal is to return above 50 GW with a fundamentally different energy mix: around 30% renewables, hydrogen-ready gas-fired plants, and nuclear, with no significant rebuilding of coal. Distributed solar and storage are positioned as core elements of national security architecture, with German firms such as BSW-Solar members already engaging on hospital, water utility, school, and business resilience projects.

[Solar: Ukraine outlines distributed solar-plus-storage reconstruction strategy]

The Future of Indonesia NPI and Asian Stainless Steel

Indonesia ESDM New HPM Formula & Nickel Market Updates

2025-2026 Global PV Market Review & Outlook: Navigating Geopolitics and Policy Shifts

SMM FREE WEBINAR: Sulfur Market: 2025 Review and 2026 Outlook

Impact of Iran Situation on Aluminum & Zinc Chains: A China-Based Market Outlook

SMM Africa Webinar: Strategic Sharing & Insights of Copper, Aluminium, New Energy, and Iron Ore Market

Lithium Is Moving Again — What It Really Means for BESS Costs and Procurement Strategy

Asia Copper and Aluminum Scrap 2025 Market Review and 2026 Outlook

SMM Aluminium Year-End Review: Indonesia 's Value Chain Acceleration - Tighter Quotas, Refinery Ramps & the Path to Aluminum Powerhouse Status

SMM Online Webinar: Nickel in Turmoil - Decoding Indonesia’s Policy Evolution & The Future of Global Supply

Category	Price Description	Change	Date
Raw Materials	Battery-Grade Lithium Carbonate USD/tonne	-142.27	Sep 10
Raw Materials	Battery-Grade Lithium Hydroxide (Coarse Particles) USD/tonne	-105.61	Sep 10
Cathode material	China Lithium Ferrous Phosphate (Powder Compact Density 2.50g/cm³ min) USD/tonne	-33.98	Sep 10
Battery separator	China 9μm Wet-process Separator USD/m²	0	Sep 10
Electrolyte	China Lithium Hexafluorophosphate USD/tonne	+5.31	Sep 10
Electrolyte	China Electrolyte (for LFP Battery) USD/tonne	+1.26	Sep 10

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