Hyperdrive

Elon Musk Relieved That Lithium Prices Are No Longer Insane

Tesla boss says he’s seeing ‘deflationary pressures’
Battery metals lithium, nickel and cobalt are down this year

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By Annie Lee

July 20, 2023 at 5:52 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

After complaining last year about surging prices for lithium, a metal used in electric-vehicle batteries, Elon Musk is feeling some relief.

“Lithium prices went absolutely insane there for a while,” the Tesla Inc. chief executive said Wednesday during the EV maker’s earnings call. After rising commodity prices made it difficult to cut costs last year, Musk said he was now “seeing what seems to be deflationary pressures.”