The White House Announces Major Investments in This Sector... Should You Consider ETFs? [Weekend Money]

Classified as Strategic Assets: Minerals and Batteries
Investment Opportunities via Domestic and Global Listed ETFs

The U.S. government is making large-scale investments in minerals and the battery industry, both of which are classified as strategic assets. In the case of minerals, the goal is to secure supply chains independent of China; for batteries, strong government support is expected under the renewable energy momentum, attracting significant interest from investors.

Woo-Yeol Park, a researcher at Shinhan Investment Corp., recently introduced related ETF products, noting that on August 7, the Donald Trump administration announced a $3 billion (approximately KRW 4.246 trillion) investment in core mineral and battery projects.

Among domestic ETFs, there are a total of 18 secondary battery ETFs and 5 ETNs. Park highlighted 'KODEX Secondary Battery Industry' as the most liquid product based on trading volume. For rare earth metals, 'PLUS Global Rare Earth & Strategic Resource Producers' is the only domestic product, investing in companies within the global rare earth supply chain.

Among U.S.-listed products, 'Global X Lithium & Battery Tech ETF (LIT)' is a representative battery ETF, while 'VanEck Rare Earth and Strategic Metals ETF (REMX)' covers rare earth metals. Park explained, "These two ETFs have outperformed the S&P 500 over the past year and are posting strong momentum. However, due to their high volatility, risk management is required."

In addition to its investments in mineral and battery projects, on the same day, the U.S. Department of Defense's Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) also announced a conditional loan agreement totaling $400 million (about KRW 566.2 billion) for Australian mining company Sunrise Energy. Park added, "The perception among Americans that investment is needed in areas critical to national security now transcends both nation and corporations." He continued, "Through the Defense Production Act, the U.S. plans to diversify the supply chains for lithium, nickel, cobalt, and other key minerals by encouraging sourcing from regions outside China."

Batteries are classified as key items necessary for wireless operation in next-generation technologies such as power demand, AI data center expansion, drones, and humanoids. Park said, "Among renewables, batteries have the strongest momentum, and are now being reevaluated as essential innovation technologies for national strategy, beyond just climate change response."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.