Lithium Extends Plunge from 2-Year High
2026-02-05 18:18
By
Andre Joaquim
1 min. read
Lithium carbonate futures sank to CNY 145,000 per tonne, from the over two-year high of CNY 180,000 on January 26th, tracking the aggressive pullback in speculative metals as markets reconsidered the demand from power storage investments in major economies.
Chinese authorities lowered export rebates for battery producers from April, driving manufacturers to front-run lithium orders.
In the meantime, ambitious bets in power and datacenter infrastructure by the Chinese government was combined with the announcement of higher power storage spending, supporting the outlook for lithium and other battery metals.
This was combined with Beijing stating it would double EV charging capacity to 180 gigawatts by 2027, supporting lithium-rich energy storage systems.
Meanwhile, authorities stated 27 mining permits were canceled in the lithium hub of Jiangxi, aligned with the earlier suspension of activity in CATL's Jianxiawo lithium mine amid Beijing's anti-involution campaign.