cell prices

[m3vuv]

hi all,about 18 months ago i brought a load of 1800mah cells to repair a pack i had,these were lipo LiFePO4 cells,a couple of months ago i went to buy another 18 of the same cells from the same seller on aliexpress,the price quoted was 500% higher than the cells i brought from him before,he said the cost of materials has risen,is this true or is he just trying it on,or have prices gone up that amount across the board due to shortages etc,think the seller was mr lee if i recall,thanks in advance m3vuv.

 

[eee291]

Battery prices went up about 10% in recent months.

 

[amberwolf]

I guess it depends on the seller's cell source. As an example, a seller that buys used or salvaged cells (or apparently unused cells with unknown provenance / quality) might get a really good deal one time, but next time the source might charge more or not be available, and they might have to buy from a much more expensive source (possibly even a legitimate/new one).