Metals Shortage Looms as EV Uptake Accelerates
A supply squeeze on the metals that power electric vehicles could be building just as global EV demand starts picking up speed again, driven in part by an unlikely source: oil price shocks tied to conflict in the Middle East. As gasoline and diesel prices climb, drivers in nations most exposed to Gulf-related supply disruptions are increasingly treating an EV purchase as an economic decision as much as an environmental one. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence data shows worldwide new energy vehicle sales climbing a modest 4% between January and August compared with the same stretch last year, though that flat-looking number…