SYDNEY, Jan 9, 2026, 16:52 AEDT — Market closed
- PLS Group ended down about 3% after touching a fresh 52-week high a day earlier
- Investors are looking to the company’s December-quarter activities report due Jan. 30
- Lithium price swings and China signals on batteries are back in focus
PLS Group Limited shares fell 3.1% to A$4.65 on Friday, a day after hitting an intraday high of A$4.89, as the rally in lithium-linked names cooled into the weekend. About 21.3 million shares changed hands, according to market data. 1
The pullback came with the broader market barely budging. The S&P/ASX 200 ended down three points at 8,716 and materials were the weakest sector on the day, down 0.9%, an ABC business live blog reported. 2
Why it matters now: PLS has become a clean read-through on lithium pricing, and the next hard numbers are close. In an ASX announcement, the company said its December 2025 quarterly activities report is scheduled for release on Friday, Jan. 30, alongside an investor webcast and call. 3
That update will be watched for output, shipments and unit costs, plus any comment on realised prices. PLS sells spodumene concentrate — a lithium-bearing ore used to make lithium chemicals — from its Pilgangoora operation in Western Australia, and supplies feedstock to a joint venture chemical plant in South Korea, the company’s website shows. 4
Lithium’s outlook has tightened again after a long stretch of oversupply, helped by rising demand for power storage batteries, Reuters reported this week. “Energy storage is likely to become a game changer for lithium,” Jinyi Su, an analyst at consultancy Fubao, told Reuters, while warning that a spike in prices could hurt the economics of storage projects. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/energy-storage-boom-strengthens-demand-outlook-beaten-down-lithium-2026-01-04/
Technically, PLS is now trading just off its 52-week peak. Its 52-week range is A$1.07 to A$4.89, and it traded between A$4.61 and A$4.80 on Friday, according to Investing.com. 5
But the trade can turn fast. China’s industry ministry has warned battery makers about overcapacity risks, urging tighter control over expansion, a signal that policy could lean against another boom-bust cycle in the supply chain. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/china-warns-battery-industry-overcapacity-risks-2026-01-08/
