ENERGY MINERALS

"This is not a metal that's going to be exempt from the normal laws"

Lithium carbonate prices and equities are rising in line with increasing demand for the battery material but an analyst with Sanford C. Bernstein has warned of potential over-supply.

Staff reporter
 Investment research firm warns of lithium over-supply

Investment research firm warns of lithium over-supply

"This is not a metal that's going to be exempt from the normal laws of commodity economics," analyst Paul Gait told Bloomberg.

"Sooner or later we will over supply."

In an indication of the growing demand for lithium, the London Metal Exchange is looking to introduce a contract for lithium.

Across the pond, monthly fundraising in Canadian financial markets for lithium companies exceeded C$40 million in four months of 2017, reaching a high of $115.8 million in June as the number of deals peaked at 14, according to data this month from Oreninc.com.

However Gait told the wire service that in the rush to meet demand, there was a risk too many mines would be developed and too much metal supplied.

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