Lithium is a white metal mainly used to make batteries for electric vehicles. In 2022 spot prices for lithium carbonate, the most traded form, surpassed $80,000 a tonne, setting records. Excitable analysts attributed the surge to an unstoppable campaign to replace the world's petrol cars with EVs, but the rally was in fact a one-off triggered by old-fashioned carmakers rushing into the thin spot market as they began building EVs, according to Tom Price of Panmure Liberum, a bank. Even though most lithium is sold under multi-year contracts, they and their battery suppliers exaggerated price moves by piling into the spot market.
By mid-2025 a global glut had kept spot prices near $10,000 a tonne, 90% below their peaks. China's government forced Jianxiawo, a big lithium mine, to close after its permit expired, briefly lifting prices, but the global market remained in surplus according to Benchmark Minerals, a data firm. Little evidence emerged that China aimed to curb production broadly.
Carob works on the principle that, when mixed with the right combination of fats and sugar, it can duplicate chocolate in color and texture. Of course, the same can be said of dirt.