The West entered the rare earths race late as countries in general were slow to act and now China is far ahead, Mineração Taboca executive manager Ronaldo Lasmar said in an interview with Fastmarkets.

Fastmarkets will publish a one-time differential on August 28, 2026, that may be used to adjust derivatives on commodity exchanges and other contracts, which settle against the assessment of the MB-LI-0033 lithium hydroxide, battery grade, spot price, cif China, Japan & Korea.

Fastmarkets will change the quality and tonnage specifications for its benchmark assessments of the MB-LI-0033 lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O, 56.5% LiOH min, battery grade, spot price, cif China, Japan & Korea and the MB-LI-0029 lithium carbonate, 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, spot prices, cif China, Japan & Korea, effective from Tuesday September 1, 2026.

The sharp rise in demand for lithium is outpacing the growth of an independent US supply chain, Ian Rodger, chief executive officer of lithium development company US Elemental, told Fastmarkets in an exclusive interview on Wednesday June 3.

While governments and industry accelerate efforts to secure the materials underpinning energy security, national defense and industrial competitiveness, Fastmarkets will be convening more than 1,250 leaders from across the global critical minerals value chain in Las Vegas this June.  Fastmarkets’ 18th Global Lithium, Battery and Critical Materials Conference, (June 22–25, 2026) has evolved into a leading forum for the critical minerals ecosystem – spanning lithium, nickel, […]

Fastmarkets is proposing to change quality and tonnage specifications in its global suite of battery-grade lithium hydroxide and lithium carbonate price assessments. These will include the benchmark assessments of the MB-LI-0033 lithium hydroxide monohydrate, LiOH.H2O 56.5% LiOH min, battery grade, spot price, cif China, Japan & Korea, and the MB-LI-0029 lithium carbonate, 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, spot […]

Fastmarkets launches payables indicators for nickel cobalt manganese (NCM) cathode black powder, CIF China, on Wednesday May 13. This launch comes following significant demand from Fastmarkets subscribers for increased transparency around prices for higher-grade battery recycling raw materials, given rising spot trading volumes. These new prices are the first of their kind, believed to be […]

Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated. The prices were published with a delay on May 12. The following prices were affected:MB-LI-0036 Lithium carbonate 99.5% Li2CO3 min, battery grade, spot price range, exw domestic China, yuan per tonne MB-LI-0040 Lithium hydroxide monohydrate LiOH.H2O, 56.5% LiOH min, battery grade, spot price range, exw domestic China, yuan per tonne These […]

Capital is flowing back into junior mining, but selectively. Investment is increasingly favouring development‑stage assets with clearer paths to production, supported by government funding and strategic partnerships. While demand for critical minerals underpins the cycle, early‑stage explorers continue to struggle for capital as investors prioritise discipline, ESG alignment and near‑term cash flow.

US-based Lyten is linking its battery manufacturing ambitions to the rapid expansion of data center infrastructure, while using former Northvolt assets to accelerate its scale-up, its chief marketing officer said in an interview on Thursday April 23.