Battery anode materials: Trading
Who buys anode and why prices sit near cost
What this tab covers How it is bought and sold: buyers and sellers, price benchmarks and who publishes them, exchanges, contract types, traders, how Indian buyers price it, recent price points, and good sources to follow.Who buys, and where
- Chinese cell makers (CATL, BYD, CALB, EVE)
- Korean and Japanese cell makers with plants in the US, Europe and Indonesia
- Indian cell makers (Ola, Reliance, Agratas, Amara Raja) buying imported anode or cells
Who sells, and from where
- Chinese anode makers (BTR, Shanshan, Putailai, Shangtai, Kaijin)
- POSCO Future M (Korea)
- Syrah (US)
- Future Indian supply from Epsilon
Price benchmarks
| Benchmark | Publisher | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| SMM anode material prices (synthetic and natural, by grade) | Shanghai Metals Market | daily, CNY/t |
| Fastmarkets spherical graphite and flake | Fastmarkets | weekly, $/t FOB China |
Exchanges
| Venue | Contract | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| None | no anode or graphite futures | all trade bilateral |
Contract types
- Annual frame contracts with quarterly price resets
- Long qualification (often 1-2 years) before supply
- Tolling for graphitisation
Traders and distributors
- Few; sales are direct from anode maker to cell maker
How Indian buyers price it
- India imports cells or anode at Chinese export prices; no DGTR duty on anode found in sources used
- Domestic electrode makers price graphite electrodes, not anode, today
Recent price points
| Date | Price | Basis | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 2023 | $2,000-2,300/t | spherical graphite 99.95% C, 15 micron, FOB China | Fastmarkets via graphite tile |
| Q3 2025 | $625/t | Syrah realised flake price | graphite tile (Ecofin) |
Good sources to follow
SNE Research press releasesfreemium research site · SNE Researchbattery material market tracking including anode
SMM anode market analysisfreemium newsletter · Shanghai Metals MarketChinese anode output, shares and input prices
Asian Metal graphite newsfreemium newsletter · Asian Metalgraphite and anode company results
EVreporterfree newsletter · EVreporter (India)Indian battery materials projects