Electric Vehicles Powering Up Demand for Battery Metals – Analyzing the Battery ETFs
According to Adamas intelligence, the total battery capacity of EVs sold during the month increased 123% year on year to close to 11.3 GWh.
Tesla was number one in terms of battery capacity deployed, accounting for 1 out of every 4 MWh deployed in February (including hybrids) and also led in the deployment of lithium, nickel and cobalt.
According to EV-volumes.com, preliminary estimates peg global EV sales for 2020 at 3.24 million, a 43% increase over the 2.26 million sold in 2019. The EV industry has come a long way in getting drivers behind the wheels of full-electric and hybrid-electric vehicles.
Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasts that in 2025, EVs will account for 10% of global passenger vehicle sales and will rise steadily to 58% of global sales in 2040.
We highlight 3 battery metals ETF this week for investors to follow:
- VanEck Vectors Rare Earth/ Strategic Metals ETF (NYSE:REMX) – Net Asset Value $665 million
- Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (NYSE:LIT) – Net Asset Value of $3.1 billion
- Amplify Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (NYSE:BATT) – Net Asset Value of $157 million
The holdings in each of the ETFs are heavily weighted to Asia, we’ve highlighted the top 5 holdings in each ETF below:
| VanEck (REMX) | Global X (LIT) | Amplify (BATT) | |
| 1 | Zhejiang Cobalt | Albemarle | BHP Group |
| 2 | China Molybdenum | Ganfeng Lithium | Tesla |
| 3 | Galaxy Resources | Samsung SDI | BYD Co |
| 4 | China Northern RE | Tesla | LG Chem |
| 5 | Orocobre | EVE Energy | Norilsk Nickel |
The VanEck (REMX) and Global X (LIT) ETFs have 10 year track records, while the Amplify ETF (BATT) came into inception in 2018. The 10 year performance differential between LIT and REMX is significant, over the period LIT is up 42% while REMX has lost 75% of its value.
Over the last year during this current EV boom all three ETFs have had strong triple digit returns, however the Amplify ETF has lagged by nearly 50%.
Copper – Interview with Mike McAllister of Sierra Metals
Copper continues its march upwards, hitting a 52 week high of $4.39/lb late Sunday night. We continue to view the small and mid cap copper miners as one of the most attractive ways to get leverage to the metal.
Capital 10X had the opportunity to sit down with Mike McAllister, Vice President, Investor Relations of Sierra Metals (TSX:SMT, NYSE:SMTS). Mike provides insight on the tight global copper supply & demand dynamic, the drivers behind Sierra’s strong 2020 results and operational outlook ahead.
Capital 10X Mining Insights ⚒️ with Mike McAllister from Sierra Metals $SMTS $SMT
▪️ Global #copper supply & demand: strength in China and global infrastructure growth.
▪️ Sierra's strong 2020 and operational outlook pic.twitter.com/KHWjUHllEM— Capital 10X (@capital10x) April 21, 2021
Psychedelics Back in the Spotlight
The psychedelics sector got a big boast last Friday (April 23rd) when Mind Medicine (NE:MMED) announced they have been approved for listing on the Nasdaq under the symbol MMED, trading is expected to begin on Tuesday April 27th.
Mindset Pharma – The Next Generation of Intellectual Property in Psychedelics
Capital 10X reconnected with James Lanthier, CEO of Mindset Pharma (CNSX:MSET), for an update on their innovations within the psychedelic space.
We discuss their data-driven approach, and the ways they are translating their broad portfolio of patent-pending drugs into the next generation of Intellectual Property available to the Psychedelic industry.
Sierra Metals is a market awareness client of Capital 10X.
