HK Stock Market Move | Lithium stocks fell in early trading, with the main lithium carbonate contract dropping by 4% during the day. High lithium prices may affect some energy storage demand.

In the early trading session, lithium stocks fell, with Ganfeng Lithium Group (01772) dropping by 4.25% to 76.6 Hong Kong dollars; Tianqi Lithium Corporation (09696) fell by 3.54% to 57.2 Hong Kong dollars. On the news front, on May 13, data from Shanghai Ganglian E-Commerce Holdings showed that the spot price of battery-grade lithium carbonate officially returned to over 200,000 yuan/ton, reaching 201,400 yuan/ton. An official from Sichuan Yahua Industrial Group told reporters that the energy storage market demand has been established and clearly become the second growth curve outside of power batteries. On May 14, the main lithium carbonate futures contract fell by 4% intraday to 193,720 yuan/ton. Guotai Haitong pointed out that it is expected that the supply and demand of lithium carbonate will shift from loose balance to tight balance by 2026. By May, disruptions in the supply side have increased. The bank pointed out that when lithium carbonate hits 200,000 yuan, the capital IRR of energy storage projects in some provinces is less than 6%, which may partially impact demand.