INFOGRAPHIC: Covid-19’s impact on cobalt supply, trade flows

It has been almost one year since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak and global economies are still recovering from the fallout. Fastmarkets analyzes the effects of the pandemic on global cobalt supply and trade flows.

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Here are some of the key discussion topics across the battery and critical minerals sectors ahead of Fastmarkets’ Global Lithium, Battery and Critical Materials conference taking place in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States on June 22-25.
The publication of Fastmarkets’ price assessments for certain spot vegetable oil and meal prices on Thursday June 18 was delayed due to a reporter error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated.
As Mexico seeks to strengthen domestic manufacturing supply chains and reduce its reliance on imported steel products, special bar quality (SBQ) steel has emerged as one of the segments offering the greatest growth potential for local producers, according to TYASA’s three chief executive officers, whom Fastmarkets sat down with in an exclusive interview to discuss the company’s new SBQ rolling mill.
China’s tightening regulation of its lithium-ion battery recycling sector is increasing black mass flows and accelerating the release of lower-cost recycled cobalt units, Fastmarkets understands.
Chinese zinc smelters expressed concerns of possible production cuts amid fierce competition for concentrates raw materials, as treatment charges (TCs) have dropped to historic lows at the end of May, though byproduct gains from sulfuric acid have still lent strong support to smelters’ margins, sources told Fastmarkets.
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-MNO-0002 manganese ore semi carbonate index, 36.5% Mn, fob Port Elizabeth, which was published incorrectly on Friday June 5 due to incorrect source data.