| Welcome to our guide to the energy and commodities markets powering the global economy. Today, reporter Annie Lee discusses whether a nascent revival in lithium prices can be sustained. Donald Trump’s election win in the US and policy moves in China have rekindled the moribund lithium market. But the revival — with prices up about 11% in a month — is looking more like a short-term blip than the start of a lasting trend. The battery metal has had a torrid time during the past couple of years, going into freefall in late 2022 amid a supply glut and spending most of 2024 at less than a fifth of its peak before that rout. But it’s benefited from tailwinds of late. Chinese subsidies encouraging drivers to trade in older cars for electric vehicles have prompted battery makers to restock lithium — a move buoyed by improved sentiment following recent stimulus efforts.  An electric vehicle at a BYD Co. dealership in Beijing. Photographer: Na Bian/Bloomberg Then there’s the Trump effect, which is spurring a flurry of lithium purchases as Chinese battery manufacturers rush to ship production ahead of a possible trade war with the US. Yet the supply surplus persists. Although the rout has triggered some output cuts, they’re not nearly enough to balance the market. SQM, the No. 2 lithium producer, is a case in point. The Chilean miner said this week its prices would remain under pressure, but also vowed to increase output. And while Trump may be juicing prices in the short term, his protectionist bent and pro-fossil fuels stance will likely hit uptake of EVs in the world’s biggest economy. BloombergNEF scaled back its forecast for EV sales in America following the Republican election sweep. It now sees them making up just a third of the total by the end of the decade, down from 48% previously. So while there are some positive signs for the market — especially out of China — they’re unlikely to change the fundamental picture of slowing growth in demand and too much supply. --Annie Lee, Bloomberg News Farmers are the latest to join Pakistan’s craze for solar panels, cutting energy bills but weakening utilities and threatening the health of the grid. Imports of solar equipment from China in the first nine months of the year were well ahead of those for the whole of 2023, according to data compiled by BNEF. The $1.7 billion of purchases would equate to 17 gigawatts of generation, more than a third of the country’s total power capacity. The US sanctioned Gazprombank, the last major Russian financial institution exempt from penalties, closing a loophole that Washington kept open during the course of the war in Ukraine because the lender is key for energy markets. After American prosecutors this week charged Indian tycoon Gautam Adani with bribery, our Big Take looks at the implications not only for his empire but for global banks, other Indian companies and for US-India relations. Gold headed for the biggest weekly gain since October 2023 as an escalation in the Russia-Ukraine conflict boosted its haven appeal, while traders also weighed prospects for further easing by the US Federal Reserve. Northvolt AB Chief Executive Officer Peter Carlsson is stepping down as the Swedish battery maker embarks on a restructuring under bankruptcy court protection. Occidental Petroleum Corp. warned that US energy independence is at risk if shale output plateaus and begins to decline. “That could come in the next five years,” CEO Vicki Hollub said in a presentation in Texas. -
Workers on Indian sugar plantations — which supply the likes of Coca-Cola Co. and Unilever Plc — risk kidnapping, assault and even murder if they try to quit their jobs, according to a New York Times investigation. -
Big Tech has lowered its profile at the COP29 climate talks on concern it’s being seen as the “new oil and gas,” with power demand from data centers rising, the Financial Times writes. -
An American investor with a history of dealmaking in Russia has asked the US to allow him to bid on the sabotaged Nord Stream 2 pipeline if it’s auctioned in bankruptcy proceedings, according to the Wall Street Journal. | 
