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Transparent and opaque pricing: The interesting case of lithium

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  • Maxwell, Philip

Abstract

Appreciating the pricing arrangements for a mineral and its compounds provides useful insight into the nature of its market and the industrial structure of its production. This paper focuses on the case of lithium, which has emerged from being a minor metal with limited profitable applications in 1950 to its glamour metal status some 65 years later. During this period bilateral contracts based on producer prices have been the major way in which prices have been negotiated. The entry of a major new producer (SQM) in the late 1990s led to a situation where price information was difficult to obtain, even though competition in the sector was growing. This is consistent with a movement from cooperative oligopoly to non-cooperative oligopoly. Growing price transparency since 2010 has been associated with the actual and projected entry of several new producers. With its continuing growth it seems inevitable that lithium will be formally traded on one of major metal exchanges within the next decade. In addition to this, the practice of transfer pricing between branches of established multinational producers also applies to the lithium industry.

Suggested Citation

  • Maxwell, Philip, 2015. "Transparent and opaque pricing: The interesting case of lithium," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 92-97.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:45:y:2015:i:c:p:92-97
    DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2015.03.007
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Yaksic, Andrés & Tilton, John E., 2009. "Using the cumulative availability curve to assess the threat of mineral depletion: The case of lithium," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 185-194, December.
    2. Radetzki, Marian, 2013. "The relentless progress of commodity exchanges in the establishment of primary commodity prices," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(3), pages 266-277.
    3. Ebensperger, Arlene & Maxwell, Philip & Moscoso, Christian, 2005. "The lithium industry: Its recent evolution and future prospects," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(3), pages 218-231, September.
    4. Radetzki,Marian, 2008. "A Handbook of Primary Commodities in the Global Economy," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521880206, Junio.
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    Cited by:

    1. Macarena Montané & Gustavo Cáceres & Mauricio Villena & Raúl O’Ryan, 2017. "Techno-Economic Forecasts of Lithium Nitrates for Thermal Storage Systems," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(5), pages 1-15, May.
    2. Tian, Xu & Geng, Yong & Sarkis, Joseph & Gao, Cuixia & Sun, Xin & Micic, Tatyana & Hao, Han & Wang, Xin, 2021. "Features of critical resource trade networks of lithium-ion batteries," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 73(C).
    3. Sterba, Jiri & Krzemień, Alicja & Riesgo Fernández, Pedro & Escanciano García-Miranda, Carmen & Fidalgo Valverde, Gregorio, 2019. "Lithium mining: Accelerating the transition to sustainable energy," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 416-426.
    4. Wang, Xiao-Qing & Qin, Meng & Moldovan, Nicoleta-Claudia & Su, Chi-Wei, 2023. "Bubble behaviors in lithium price and the contagion effect: An industry chain perspective," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 83(C).
    5. Fizaine, Florian, 2018. "Toward generalization of futures contracts for raw materials: A probabilistic answer applied to metal markets," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 379-388.
    6. Philip Maxwell & Mauricio Mora, 2020. "Lithium and Chile: looking back and looking forward," Mineral Economics, Springer;Raw Materials Group (RMG);Luleå University of Technology, vol. 33(1), pages 57-71, July.
    7. Shigetomi, Yosuke & Nansai, Keisuke & Kagawa, Shigemi & Kondo, Yasushi & Tohno, Susumu, 2017. "Economic and social determinants of global physical flows of critical metals," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 107-113.
    8. Fizaine, Florian, 2015. "Minor metals and organized markets: News highlights about the consequences of establishing a futures market in a thin market with a dual trading price system," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(P2), pages 59-70.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • L11 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • Q31 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Nonrenewable Resources and Conservation - - - Demand and Supply; Prices

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