China’s steel demand shifts to higher-grade ore, Rio Tinto exec says
"The demand for high grade ore continues to be strong," chief commercial officer Bold Baatar said.
Australia’s Mineral Resources on Friday said sale price for lithium from its Western Australia project for the December quarter had been finalised at 14.5% below the previous quarter prices amid weaker demand for the commodity.
The sale price for 6% spodumene concentrate shipments at its Mt Marion Lithium Project has been set at $520.92 per dry metric tonne for the December quarter, versus $608.95 in the previous quarter, Mineral Resources added.
The drop comes as Australian lithium miners grapple with a prolonged downturn in prices amid slowing electric vehicle (EV) sales in China, which has clouded the near-term outlook for demand.
New energy vehicle sales in China, the world’s biggest auto market, have been dented by a steep cut in subsidies this year with sales in November dropping 43.7%, following a 45.6% drop from a year earlier in October.
Last month, Mineral Resources said its joint venture with the world’s largest lithium producer Albemarle Corp had decided to pause operations at the Wodgina Project due to “challenging” lithium market conditions.
(By Shreya Mariam Job; Editing by Himani Sarkar)
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