Lithium carbonate futures in China rose past CNY 86,000 per tonne in November, the highest in 14 months, amid stronger demand for batteries and power infrastructure. China signaled its latest support to the electric vehicle industry and lithium-rich energy storage systems with compensation mechanisms for power storage infrastructure, doubling EV charging capacity to 180 gigawatts by 2027. Also, output of new energy vehicles in China rose by 33.1% in the first ten months of the year, with October sales reflecting 51.6% of the market share, the first majority for new energy vehicles on record. Consequently, major producer Ganfeng signaled they expect lithium demand to grow by 30% next year. On the supply front, markets continued to assess the magnitude of intervention that Beijing will enforce due to its anti-involution initiative. Beijing approved the restart of activity in CATL’s Jiangxi mine after its suspension, enabling activity in the mine responsible for 3% of global supply.
