Copper foil is used as the main conductor in PCB (printed circuit board) laminate, which is in short supply worldwide. The report estimates that the supply of copper foil is short of  more than 2 million pieces per month. 

The reason for this shortage is that copper foil is a key component for the production of lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles. Due to the investment of Tesla, Volvo;s decision to realize all electric from 2019 and the strong encouragement of the Chinese government, the output of electric vehicles is increasing and the demand is surging. 

Since these batteries require higher quality copper foil than PCBs, suppliers can sell to the electric vehicle market at a higher profit margin, which is where they focus and their inventory.