' Lithium carbonate prices rose past CNY 200,000 per tonne, extending its rebound from the 19-month low of CNY 165,500 on April 24th amid renewed optimism for electric battery demand. Fresh data showed that NEV sales and output in China both soared by 110% year-on-year in April, trimming concerns about poor demand levels at the start of the year. During the first quarter, the drop in demand coincided with a significant oversupply of batteries in the period as producers took advantage of final inflows of government subsidies and ramped up production until the end of 2022, creating unsustainably high inventory levels. Robust expectations for longer-term demand also supported the bets that lithium will extend its rebound from its plunge this year, as government incentives to switch to EVs lead analysts to forecast that lithium demand by 2040 will be 16 times higher than present-day levels. '
