Russia-Ukraine War Causes Scarcity Of Raw Materials, Electric Car Prices Will Rise

The supply of the international auto industry was disrupted by the Russia-Ukraine war. (photo: twitter @sentdefender)

JAKARTA – Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said the US electric car manufacturer and rocket company SpaceX are facing significant inflationary pressures in raw materials and logistics.

Musk in a tweet on Sunday, March 13, questioned the outlook for the inflation rate and said his company is "not alone" facing this. He also retweeted an article that said the Ukraine-Russia conflict had sent prices of the commodities they needed to their highest levels since 2008.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has led to a spike in prices for metals used in cars, from aluminum in bodywork to palladium in catalytic converters to high-grade nickel in electric vehicle batteries. This makes it more likely that customers and customers will pay their bills because the price of the car will soar.

Soaring raw material prices have raised concerns about the EV (electric vehicle) economy, as legacy automakers and start-ups prepare to launch new cars this year after tackling problems related to chip shortages over the past two years.

In addition, geopolitical challenges arising from the invasion of Ukraine have affected plant operations in the United States and made it difficult for raw material suppliers to determine prices.

"Just as hopes of a semi-conductor shortage are easing ... the invasion has resulted in new disruptions to supplies of critical materials and a worrying spike in prices," said Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter.

Wells Fargo analysts noted that the price of nickel, a key material used in batteries, was up 130%, while cobalt, lithium, and aluminum jumped 16% to 88% this year.

Tesla last week raised the price of its popular SUV and sedan in China and the United States by $1.000. Rivian Automotive Inc. also warned it would cut production by half what it had previously planned. Meanwhile, Toyota Motor Corp. said it would reduce production due to supply chain problems.

Shares of Rivian and Nikola Corp fell between 0.7% and 2.7%, while Tesla was slightly higher in pre-close trading.