Waning demand for lithium cobalt oxide (LCO) batteries - as a result of slowing consumption of consumer electronic products amid the Covid-19 pandemic - has weighed on upstream cobalt tetroxide prices since early March, sources said.
Fastmarkets' assessment for cobalt tetroxide 72.6% Co min, delivered China dropped to 170,000-180,000 yuan ($23,970-25,380) per tonne on Friday April 3, down 2% from 175,000-182,000 yuan per tonne on April 1. For reference, the battery raw material price has fallen 18.6% since the beginning of March.The global spread of coronavirus has hit the consumption of consumer electronic products hard, with a significant decline in smart...