Shipped Where
Imported, 2025Imported 2025
$160 million$160M
vs 2010
3.9× (nominal)
Arrived by shipBy ship
99%
Busiest portTop port
Charleston, SC

Most imported lithium carbonate comes from Argentina: 56% of $160 million.

Chile is a close second at 43%. Lithium carbonate.

Where US lithium carbonate comes from, 2025Where it comes from

Share by value of the $160M the US imported, by country of originShare by value, by country of origin

  1. 01Argentina$89.5M56.0%
  2. 02Chile$68.2M42.7%
  3. 03France$1.0M0.6%
  4. 04United Kingdom$662K0.4%
  5. 05China$232K0.1%
  6. 06India$101K<0.1%
  7. 07Germany$81K<0.1%
  8. 08Estonia$11K<0.1%
  9. 09Japan$5K<0.1%

Total US lithium carbonate imports by year · $41.3M in 2010 to $160M in 2025Replay the ranking year by year, 2010 to 2025

2025Press play to replay the ranking

Then and now: 2015 vs 2025Then and now

Each country's share of US lithium carbonate imports. Gray bar is 2015, colored bar is 2025.Share of US lithium carbonate imports. Gray is 2015, color is 2025.

Chile40% → 43%
France0% → 0.6%
United Kingdom<0.1% → 0.4%
Germany0% → <0.1%
Estonia0% → <0.1%
Japan<0.1% → <0.1%
China0.3% → 0.1%
India1.3% → <0.1%
Argentina58% → 56%
2015 share2025, gained2025, lost

Where it's produced

Bigger circle = more value, 2025. Numbers match the list.

Most imported lithium carbonate is produced in Latin America. Argentina alone sends 56%, and Chile adds another 43%.

0102030405060708
0102030405060708
  1. 01Argentina
  2. 02Chile
  3. 03France
  4. 04United Kingdom
  5. 05China
  6. 06India
  7. 07Germany
  8. 08Estonia

Where it lands

US port where it entered, 2025. Letters match the list.

99% arrives by ship, almost all in containers, mostly through East Coast ports. Most of it enters at Charleston (65%). Baltimore follows at 32%.

ABCDEF
ABCDEF
  1. ACharleston, SC $103M
  2. BBaltimore, MD $50.5M
  3. CNewark, NJ $2.9M
  4. DJFK Airport, NY $1.6M
  5. ENorfolk, VA $570K
  6. FPhiladelphia, PA $557K
More detail: states listed on entry paperworkMore detail: states on paperwork

This is the destination written on customs forms, often a warehouse or distributor near the port. It is not where the lithium carbonate is used.

Four states are listed for over $10M each.

  1. 01North Carolina$86.3M
  2. 02Maryland$26.7M
  3. 03Delaware$24.1M
  4. 04South Carolina$16.8M
  5. 05Kentucky$3.1M
$10M+$4–10M$1–4M$100K–1MUnder $100K

Counted under HS 283691. How we count.