Why Now Is The Time To Watch These 8 Lithium Stocks

During the Tesla Inc (NASDAQ: TSLA) earnings call on Wednesday, CEO Elon Musk asked for more public investments in the lithium mining industry. He noted that the fundamental limiting factor for manufacturing electric vehicles is the batteries, more specifically, the lithium used to produce them.

“We think we’re going to need to help the industry on this front,” Musk said. “I’d certainly encourage entrepreneurs out there who are looking for opportunities to get into the lithium business. Lithium margins right now are practically software margins,” Musk added, alluding to the fact that typical software margins fall between 60% to 80%.

See Also: Will Tesla Pull An AMC And Invest In Mining Companies? Here's What Elon Musk Suggested

The Joe Biden administration recently announced it would use the Defense Production Act to assure that lithium used in American EVs is produced in the U.S, citing a national security problem with reliance on imported lithium.

Lithium mining has increased by around 27% annually since 2015, and worldwide electric vehicle sales have increased by 40% year-over-year, making lithium stocks an interesting play, particularly when thinking about adding to an investor's portfolio during the electric vehicle industry's expansion.

Here is a list of lithium stocks to keep an eye on.

Albemarle Corporation (NYSE: ALB)
Sociedad Química y Minera de Chile ADR (NYSE: SQM)
Piedmont Lithium (NASDAQ: PLL)
Sigma Lithium Corp (NASDAQ: SGML)
Livent Corp (NYSE: LTHM)
Standard Lithium Ltd (NYSE: SLI)
Lithium Americas Corp (NYSE: LAC)
Rio Tinto plc ADR (NYSE: RIO)