Shares in lithium mining companies continued their recent downward trend.

At the time of writing, Ganfeng Lithium Group Co.,Ltd. (HKEX: 01772) was down 6.33% to HK$37.32, while Tianqi Lithium Corporation (HKEX: 09696) fell 4.63% to HK$32.12.

Performance Divergence Emerges

This movement follows the release of impressive first-half performance forecasts by the two leading lithium producers, though a clear divergence is evident on a quarterly basis.

Ganfeng Lithium Group Co.,Ltd. anticipates net profit attributable to shareholders of between RMB 3.65 billion and RMB 4.6 billion for the first six months, marking a significant turnaround from a loss in the same period last year, representing an increase of approximately 787.07% to 965.9%.

However, its second-quarter net profit is estimated to be in the range of RMB 1.813 billion to RMB 2.763 billion, indicating a sequential change from a decline of 1.3% to a gain of 50.41%.

Tianqi Lithium Corporation expects its first-half net profit to reach between RMB 2.85 billion and RMB 4.25 billion, a staggering year-on-year increase of 3276.35% to 4934.91%.

Its second-quarter net profit is projected to be approximately RMB 974 million to RMB 2.374 billion, representing a sequential change ranging from a decrease of 48.08% to an increase of 26.55%.

Market Outlook for Futures

Analysis suggests that lithium carbonate futures prices are likely to remain in a state of low-level volatility over the next one to two weeks.

The core rationale lies in a mix of opposing factors: bearish pressure primarily stems from continuously rising capacity utilisation rates and the anticipated supply increase from the steady commissioning of overseas salt lake projects, coupled with soft new energy vehicle sales data from early July which has dampened optimism on the demand side.

Nevertheless, the downside for prices is also seen as limited, as consecutive declines in industry inventories indicate that the market fundamentals are not in a state of broad oversupply.