CATL(SZ:300750) Tong Hui Qi Huo·2025-08-27 14:51Group 1: Report Industry Investment Rating - Not provided in the content Group 2: Core Viewpoints of the Report - The short - term lithium carbonate market may fluctuate widely within the current range. The contraction expectation caused by CATL's production suspension on the supply side is being partially offset by the increase in salt - lake lithium extraction and the recovery of imports. Although the downstream is in the peak season, the procurement rhythm has become cautious due to previous stockpiling, and the continuous pressure on cathode material prices weakens demand elasticity. Lithium carbonate futures may continue to fluctuate within the high - level range [3]. Group 3: Summary by Relevant Catalogs 1. Daily Market Summary a. Lithium Carbonate Futures Market Data Changes Analysis - On August 26, the main contract of lithium carbonate closed at 79,020 yuan/ton, a slight decline of 0.45% from the previous trading day. The basis continued to weaken, dropping from 3,320 yuan/ton on the 25th to 2,680 yuan/ton, and the futures discount to the spot increased, indicating that the market's expectation of future supply pressure has increased [1]. - The trading volume of the main contract shrank by 10.7% to 559,599 lots, and the open interest decreased by 19,171 lots. The trading activity of funds cooled down, and some long - positions left the market for risk - avoidance [1]. b. Analysis of Industrial Chain Supply - Demand and Inventory Changes - Supply side: There are both short - term disturbances and long - term adjustments. The suspension of CATL's Jiangxi Jianxiawo lithium mica mining area since August 10 has supported the spot market. However, the expansion projects of salt - lake lithium extraction are advancing, and the capacity utilization rate of lithium carbonate has increased by 2.49 percentage points week - on - week to 66.41%, so the overall supply has increased marginally. In July, the import volume of lithium carbonate decreased by 22% month - on - month to 13,845 tons, but Chile's exports to China increased by 33% month - on - month, and the seasonal recovery of overseas supply may ease the tight domestic resource situation [2]. - Demand side: The demand in the peak season remains resilient but has limited upward momentum. From August 1 to 17, the retail penetration rate of new energy passenger vehicles reached 58%, and the demand has improved marginally. The production of cathode materials has remained at a high level, but the prices of power - type lithium iron phosphate and ternary materials have declined slightly, and the downstream cost transfer is under pressure. The overall cell prices are stable, and only the square lithium iron phosphate cells have risen slightly by 0.62%. The rigid demand on the demand side still exists, but the momentum for new orders is insufficient [2]. - Inventory and warehouse receipts: The lithium carbonate inventory decreased by 713 tons week - on - week to 141,543 tons, with a destocking rate of 0.5%, indicating that the supply - demand tight - balance pattern continues. There is no significant change in warehouse receipts, and the low - inventory environment still supports the price bottom [2]. c. Market Summary - The short - term lithium carbonate market may fluctuate widely within the current range. The lithium carbonate futures may continue to fluctuate within the high - level range, and attention should be paid to the unexpected disturbances to the supply caused by the production reduction or suspension events of lithium mica smelters due to cost inversion [3]. 2. Industrial Chain Price Monitoring - On August 26, the main contract of lithium carbonate was 79,020 yuan/ton, a decrease of 0.45% from August 25. The basis was 2,680 yuan/ton, a decrease of 19.28% from the previous day. The open interest of the main contract decreased by 5.20% to 349,496 lots, and the trading volume decreased by 10.74% to 559,599 lots. The market price of battery - grade lithium carbonate was 81,700 yuan/ton, a decrease of 1.21% [5]. - From August 15 to August 22, the capacity utilization rate of lithium carbonate increased from 63.92% to 66.41%, and the inventory decreased by 0.50% to 141,543 tons. Among the cells, the price of 523 cylindrical ternary cells increased by 0.23%, the price of cobalt - acid lithium cells increased by 3.60%, and the price of square lithium iron phosphate cells increased by 0.62% [5]. 3. Industry Dynamics and Interpretations a. Spot Market Quotations - On August 26, the SMM battery - grade lithium carbonate index price was 81,739 yuan/ton, a decrease of 780 yuan/ton from the previous working day. The downstream procurement and pricing activities increased slightly compared with the previous day, but some manufacturers reduced their procurement volume this week compared with last week. The overall downstream procurement attitude has become cautious, and they are generally waiting for further price cuts. In the short term, the spot price of lithium carbonate is expected to remain relatively high and continue to fluctuate within the range [6]. b. Downstream Consumption Situation - From August 1 to 17, the retail volume of the new energy passenger vehicle market was 502,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 9% and a month - on - month increase of 12%. The retail penetration rate was 58.0%, and the cumulative retail volume this year was 6.958 million units, a year - on - year increase of 28%. The wholesale volume of new energy passenger vehicles was 474,000 units, a year - on - year increase of 18% and a month - on - month increase of 10%. The wholesale penetration rate was 56.4%, and the cumulative wholesale volume this year was 8.108 million units, a year - on - year increase of 34% [7]. c. Industry News - Since the official suspension of CATL's Jiangxi Yichun Jianxiawo mining area on August 10, the "butterfly effect" has spread throughout the industrial chain [8]. - On August 18, Lanxiao Technology won the bid for the adsorption system of the expansion and renovation project of the comprehensive utilization of old brine for lithium extraction from the Lop Nur Salt Lake of Guotou Xinjiang Lithium Industry Co., Ltd., with a bid amount of 35.7712 million yuan, which will have a positive impact on the company's development in the salt - lake lithium extraction industry [9]. - On August 15, CATL's Jianxiawo mining area suspended production due to the expiration of the mining license, which will directly affect the price of lithium carbonate. Yichun local mines are required to re - apply before September 30 this year [9]. 4. Industrial Chain Data Charts - The content mainly lists the names of various data charts, including the main contract and basis of lithium carbonate futures, lithium concentrate prices, etc., without specific data descriptions [10][13][15]