GreenergyDaily

Feb. 26, 2026

Lithium prices and shares surged after Zimbabwe, one of the world's top producers, suspended concentrate exports, fueling fears that global supplies of the battery ingredient will tighten.

Lithium carbonate on the Guangzhou Futures Exchange rallied 3.5% to 173,660 yuan a ton as of 15:00 p.m. local time. Shares of lithium producers from China to Australia and the Americas also jumped.

Zimbabwe halted exports of lithium concentrate from Wednesday, in a move that would promote domestic processing and curtail illegal shipments. The ban is in effect until further notice, said Mines Minister Polite Kambamura. Export authorizations will only be forthcoming to companies holding valid mining licenses and approved processing capacity, the minister said in a statement.

The African nation accounted for about 10% of the world's mined lithium last year, according to the US Geological Survey. Exports of lithium sulphate, an intermediate product, wouldn't be affected by the new policy, Citic Securities Co. said in a note.

"The higher lithium price and continuous illegal shipments are likely driving factors for why the overhaul is happening now," said Cameron Hughes, an analyst at consultancy CRU Group, who likened the move to a similar ban by the Democratic Republic of Congo on cobalt exports last year.

Zimbabwe has committed to cracking down on illicit commodities trading, and introduced measures to encourage downstream processing. China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co. and Sinomine Resource Group Co. are both developing projects in the country to that end.

Some 19% of China's imported lithium concentrate came from Zimbabwe last year, Citic Securities said.

Shares of China's Tianqi Lithium Corp. climbed as much as 7.3% in Hong Kong, while Ganfeng Lithium Group Co. advanced 5.6%. In Australia, PLS Group Ltd. rose as much as 8% and Mineral Resources Ltd. as much as 6%. In the US, Sigma Lithium Corp. closed 30% higher while Albemarle Corp. added 10%.