According to the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association Lithium Branch, domestic carbonate lithium production experienced a slight decline in April 2025, falling 14.2% month-on-month to 68,300 tonnes, primarily due to maintenance shutdowns of certain production lines. In contrast, production of lithium hydroxide remained stable. Despite the persistent growth in new energy vehicle production and sales, as well as the increasing installed capacity of power batteries, which would typically stimulate strong demand for carbonate lithium, domestic prices for this commodity continued to decline. Specifically, battery-grade carbonate lithium prices fell by 8.88%, industrial-grade carbonate lithium prices dropped by 8.81%, and the closing price of the main contract decreased by 2.92%.
