Here's some wild speculation grounded on a wisp of research:
Eurasia based cartel had cornered the market on lithium vital for new energy. US based interests bent the ear of the Chilean government to break this monopoly by nationalizing these privately owned mines and rediverting the supply. Speculators got wrecked. Does anyone know if a Credit Suisse customer had dealings in Chile?
tianqi sold all his shares of SQM (one of Chile lithium companies, around 23%) after the announcement.
The situation of the lithium in Chile is very particular. in the Pinochet dictatorship, litium was nationalized, because it was a key ingredient of atomic bombs (and not much else at that time), and USA didn't want other countries to access the resource, so all current mines are in a lease contract (Albemarle until 2043, SQM until 2030). the new proposition opens new zones for exploitation, in exchange of the public-private parnership
Eurasia based cartel had cornered the market on lithium vital for new energy. US based interests bent the ear of the Chilean government to break this monopoly by nationalizing these privately owned mines and rediverting the supply. Speculators got wrecked. Does anyone know if a Credit Suisse customer had dealings in Chile?