Joe Biden’s proposed $2 trillion in- frastructure bill would help create bull conditions in commodity markets, par- ticularly in steel and cobalt, lithium, and copper — materials of the energy transition, according to Fastmarkets. “Joe Biden’s $2 trillion infra- structure plan could be more positive for metals markets than Obama’s far smaller 2009 package for reasons be- yond its whopping size,” says Thor- sten Schier, Metals & Mining expert at Fastmarkets. “It does not require so-called shov- el-ready projects, and thus creates the potential for strong demand going for- ward several years.” According to the analytics firm, Biden’s bill creates strong bullish fac- tors not only in steel and scrap pric- es ($1 trillion equals a net demand for around 50 million tonnes of steel) but in the materials of the energy transi- tion. “Finally, the promised establish- ment of an office in the Commerce Dept to monitor and support domestic production of critical goods and ma- terials would only be a boon to those with facilities in the US,” says Schier. But the bill faces pressure from a small group of Democrats led by West Virginia senator Joe Manchin trying to support coal jobs. “A comparable threat comes from the unions that have supported Biden (as he has voiced his lifelong sup- port for them) and may turn against the crucial green agenda, fearful of a smaller number of lower-paying, non- union jobs in a green energy econo- my,” said Schier. It will also take not only money but policy and political guile to bring EV and battery manufacturing to the US rather than the booming markets of Asia, the Fastmarkets analyst says. Biden bill could drive up prices
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35
April 2021
The Alaska Miner
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