Cobalt prices fell sharply on April 3rd
According to the Commodity Cobalt Market Analysis System of Shengyi Society, the cobalt price on April 3rd was 415500 yuan/ton, a significant decrease of 2.46% compared to the cobalt price of 426000 yuan/ton on April 1st. The domestic spot price of cobalt fell sharply in April. Congo (Kinshasa) has further announced new regulations on cobalt ore export quota control. The Q4 quota for 2025 can be extended up to the end of April, and the Q1 quota for 2026 can be extended up to the end of June. Cobalt ore from Congo (Kinshasa) may be shipped in bulk in April; The approval of cobalt intermediate products is slow, and the shipment progress of cobalt from the Democratic Republic of Congo is slow. The expected supply of cobalt in April briefly increased, resulting in a decrease in demand and a sharp drop in cobalt prices in April.
Overseas markets: Cobalt prices fall in April
The cobalt price in April changed from the upward trend in March and began to fluctuate and decline. The international cobalt price has fallen, which is bearish for the domestic cobalt market.
Supply side: New export quota regulations for cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo lead to increased supply
As a supplier of 70% of the world’s cobalt raw materials, the mining regulatory agency of the Democratic Republic of Congo has officially issued new regulations on cobalt ore export quota control, setting a final deadline for global miners to fulfill their obligations: mining companies must complete all outstanding export quotas for the fourth quarter of 2025 before April 30, 2026. Any unused quotas beyond the deadline will be fully confiscated and transferred back to the national strategic reserve. At the same time, it is clarified that the export quota for the first quarter of 2026 can be extended to complete shipment before June 30, 2026, and can be implemented synchronously with the quota for the second quarter. The total quota allocated for the whole year of 2026 is still valid. The introduction of new regulations may lead to concentrated shipments of cobalt mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo in April, increasing short-term supply expectations in the cobalt market and intensifying downward pressure on cobalt prices.
Market Overview and Future Outlook
According to data analysts from Shengyi Society, the release of new cobalt ore export quota control regulations in the Democratic Republic of Congo has led to an increase in short-term cobalt ore outflow expectations and supply in the cobalt market. At the same time, due to multiple restrictions on operations and logistics under the new cobalt quota system, the approval process for cobalt exports in the Democratic Republic of Congo has been slow, resulting in a serious delay in the implementation of allocation quotas for most enterprises, limited increase in cobalt market supply, and limited pressure on cobalt price decline. Overall, the increase in supply and demand is weak, and it is expected that cobalt prices will slightly decline in April.
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