Cobalt sulfate prices have trended upward since early September this year due to continuously higher raw materials costs and the rising cost of chemical auxiliary materials despite thin downstream demand, sources told Fastmarkets.
Fastmarkets' assessment of the cobalt sulfate 20.5% Co basis, exw China price was assessed at 89,000-93,000 yuan ($13,914-14,539) per tonne on Wednesday October 20, up by 1,000 yuan per tonne from 88,000-92,000 yuan per tonne on October 15. The price was up by 13,000-14,000 yuan per tonne from 76,000-79,000 yuan per tonne on September 1, when prices began to trend upward.In late September, consumers from the nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) battery precursor materials sector cut their production by at least 30% due to the power cut policy in China. Though some precursor producers' production returned to normal in October, purchasing activity remained low and sources expect more production curbs in winter, which...