Interest in recycling battery raw materials in the US has increased, particularly from the electronics and lithium-ion battery sectors, and due in part to the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), according to New York-based Glencore trader Mary Schilling.

Global copper futures prices are in a frenzy, with record highs being logged on the New York-based Commodity Exchange (Comex), London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) in recent days

The South Korea government has started to build up a national stockpile of lithium reserves through the state-owned Korea Mine Rehabilitation & Mineral Resources Corp (KOMIR), Fastmarkets was told on Tuesday May 21

A host of Chinese battery manufacturers have been increasing their production of electrolytic nickel to reap gains from strong futures prices because the growth in downstream demand for electric vehicles (EVs) is slowing, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday May 21

Fastmarkets rounds up the key discussion points at the 30th annual Cobalt Institute conference in New York, from May 12-14.

Copper fabricators in China and the wider Southeast Asian region continue to feel the pain of high copper prices on futures exchanges and a lack of new orderbooks, with some having already asked for a postponing of shipments of long-term copper cathodes, sources told Fastmarkets in the week to Wednesday May 15

This legislation emphasizes the crucial role of graphite in electrification efforts and highlights the ongoing significance of both natural and synthetic graphite in the EU's green transition journey

Standard Lithium announced on Wednesday May 8 that it was forming a partnership with the multinational energy company Equinor to accelerate the development of its South West Arkansas and East Texas lithium brine projects in the United States

Recent weeks have seen a significant number of miners agreeing sales of copper concentrate to traders for one to four years of supply, Fastmarkets has learned

The copper market is facing a historical moment with Chinese smelters now paying premiums for raw material copper concentrate while selling their finished product at a discount, but participants point to easing concentrate demand in the second quarter as supportive for the market