Following the 2011 Fukushima disaster, the uranium market and price environment remained muted, as reactor shutdowns vaporised demand faster than mine supply could adjust. Now, however, the uranium market is entering a structural deficit, as assessed by Benchmark's Uranium Service. The market is already in a marginal deficit for 2026. As nuclear power plays a growing role in the roll-out of data centres and other industries, this deficit is forecast to grow, and will continue to expand unless new supply can be bought online.

Plans to halt approvals for new Chinese cell capacity for 2026 have been confirmed and expanded to include production of cells for EV applications as well as for battery energy stationary storage (BESS) as part of a review of total battery capacity, expected to be completed by year end. 

Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, specialising in EV and battery supply chain research and insights, reports that 1.83 million electric vehicles (EVs) were sold globally in August 2026, bringing year-to-date (YTD) 2026 EV sales to 13.4 million. In August 2026, EV sales increased by 2% year-on-year (y-o-y).

Copper prices have hit record high after record high in 2026, and are approaching USD 15,000/t as of 10 September. This is despite 2025’s multi-year high surplus and 2026 looking likely to be a broad surplus too.  Part of the reason prices are not reflecting the strong surplus is that huge flows into the US are making the market feel significantly tighter than it is.  In 2025, so much copper went to the US that Benchmark assessed the market as “feeling” 700kt tighter in 2025 than the actual surplus, and Benchmark expects the perceived tightness to be 880kt lower than the actual surplus in 2026.