The Cobalt Market Saw a Record-Breaking Supply Boom in 2022
- Market flips from deficit to surplus, Darton Commodities says
- Cobalt supply grew 23% on a sharp rise in mined production
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A record surge in supply of cobalt last year coincided with weaker demand in the second half, to leave the crucial battery metal in a massive surplus by the end of 2022, according to specialist trading house Darton Commodities.
Mined cobalt supply grew by 23%, helping to wipe out a big deficit from a year earlier, Darton said Monday in its annual cobalt report. At the same time, consumption was affected by a slowdown in demand from the electronics sector, which vies with the electric-vehicle industry as the biggest consumer of the battery metal.