Cathie Wood: ‘Lithium will be in excess supply during the next few years’
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Cathie Wood and ARK Invest argued that actions taken in recent years to increase the production of the lithium needed for EV batteries have eased a supply problem that had been a major stumbling block for the industry.
Now, Wood and her team believe that lithium will be in excess supply over the next handful of years, which in turn would drive down the price and provide a major cost relief for EV names, like Tesla (TSLA).
Cathie Wood tweeted late Monday night: âThe 10-fold increase in lithium prices during the past two years is a clarion call for more production and supply. Now that CATL in China, Samsung and LG in Korea, and major auto makers have committed to the EV revolution, odds are high that lithium will be in excess supply during the next few years.â
Ark noted that the price of lithium essentially doubled in 2017 to $15K per metric ton and supply reacted. Currently lithium trades at roughly $70K per metric ton. See graphic below, provided by ARK Invest:

Additionally, Sam Korus, ARK's director of research, stated: âGlobal automakers have earmarked ~$600 billion for battery investments over the next 10 years.â ARK's research highlights that it would roughly take around $30B in capex to bring the new mines online to meet demand expectations.
Concerns around lithium batteries and electric vehicles are always top of mind for Wood as her actively managed ETFs have large stakes in Elon Muskâs Tesla (TSLA). At the moment Woodâs flagship ARK Innovation ETF (NYSEARCA:ARKK) has a 10.80% weighting in TSLA, placing the stock as its top holding.
Moreover, ARK Autonomous Tech & Robotics ETF (BATS:ARKQ) also puts TSLA as its top holding as it weights the EV giant as 14.70% of the fund. Aside from ARKK and ARKQ, ARK Next Generation Internet ETF (NYSEARCA:ARKW) holds a 7.16% weighting in TSLA and classifies the stock as its third-largest holding.
Aside from the ARK family of ETFs, other funds that might take notice of Arkâs research include the Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (LIT), Amplify Lithium & Battery Technology ETF (BATT) and the S&P Global Core Battery Metals ETF (ION).
In other Ark Invest news, Cathie Woodâs âBig Ideas 2023â sees artificial intelligence as the future.