Battery: Q1 is the traditional off-season for new energy vehicles and energy storage demand, which affects the shipments of leading battery companies to decline by an average of 10-30% month-on-month. At the same time, affected by the month-on-month decline in the utilization rate, the unit net profit of the head battery enterprises decreased slightly by more than 0.01 yuan/Wh month-on-month.
Cathode: In 2023Q4, most cathode companies have completed the large-scale impairment provision of inventory, and there is basically no significant impairment in 2024Q1. Affected by the low operating rate of the industry from January to February, only Hunan Yuneng of lithium iron phosphate enterprises in Q1 relied on scale advantages to achieve profitability, and the profitability of ternary cathode enterprises in Q1 was significantly under pressure. However, compared with 2023Q4, it showed a positive trend compared with the previous month. From the perspective of shipments, the significant destocking of the battery sector in 2023Q4 caused the production of cathode materials to be weak,.In 2024Q1, under the background of low terminal inventory and the recovery of Q2 demand for industry reserves, the shipments of most cathode companies showed a flat trend month-on-month.
Negative electrode: In 2024Q1, the operating profit per ton of anode products of the head enterprises is about 2000-3000 yuan, which is the same as that of Q4 as a whole. In terms of shipments, 2024Q1 is affected by the traditional off-season, and the shipments of the head enterprises are about 2000 yuan on average compared with 2023Q4.
Electrolyte: In 2024Q1, affected by factors such as declining product prices and the traditional off-season, the profit per ton of leading electrolyte enterprises was about 1,000-1,300 yuan, a decrease of 57%-67% month-on-month compared with the net profit of non-single ton deducted in 2023Q4, and the second- and third-tier enterprises all suffered losses. In terms of shipments, affected by the traditional off-season factors in Q1, the average shipments of electrolyte companies decreased by about 20%-30% month-on-month.
Diaphragm: The price of industry products continues to fall, and the profits of leading enterprises have declined significantly. In 2023Q4-2024Q1, the price of industry products continued to drop, and the profitability of diaphragm enterprises declined significantly. The profit of the diaphragm unit of the head enterprises in 2024Q1 was about 0.15-0.2 yuan per square meter, a decrease of 50%-60% compared with 2023Q3. In terms of shipments, 2024Q1 is generally close to 2023Q4.
Structural parts: In 2024Q1, the unit value of structural parts decreased by about 5%-10% month-on-month. The gross profit margin of the head enterprises in 2024Q1 decreased by about 2pct month-on-month, which was lower than the decline in value as a whole.
