GANFENGLITHIUM (01772) saw its shares rise more than 4% during the trading session. As of the latest update, the stock was up 3.89%, trading at HKD 81.55, with a turnover of HKD 389 million. The company is scheduled to release its first-quarter financial report for 2026 on April 29. Prior to this, GANFENGLITHIUM had issued a positive profit alert. Citigroup noted that the company returned to profitability in the first quarter of this year, with net profit estimated between RMB 1.6 billion and RMB 2.1 billion. Using the midpoint of this range, core net profit would be approximately RMB 1.5 billion, meeting market expectations. The strong performance was primarily driven by a sharp increase in average selling prices, with the average price of lithium carbonate reaching RMB 154,000 per ton during the period, a 75% increase quarter-over-quarter.

Notably, on the supply side, China Galaxy Securities indicated that Zimbabwe's ban on lithium ore exports, announced in February, could gradually impact the supply of raw materials for domestic lithium salt production starting in May. Additionally, four key lithium mica mines in Jiangxi province, which are undergoing license renewal procedures, are expected to suspend operations between May and June for approval processes. Furthermore, IGO has revised down its production guidance for the Greenbushes lithium mine for the 2026 fiscal year by nearly 180,000 tons. Supply disruptions, coupled with marginally rising demand, may reopen the supply-demand gap for lithium carbonate in the domestic market, leading to inventory reduction and supporting further increases in lithium prices.