Industrial Value Creation and Strategic Raw Material Dependencies

Global supply chains remain under structural pressure. A comprehensive Deloitte analysis on Germany’s import dependency in lithium, silicon, and cobalt highlights that key industrial value chains are heavily dependent on China and several Southeast Asian economies, including Taiwan and Malaysia (cf. Deloitte, Supply Chain Raw Materials Analysis).

For financial actors and investment platforms such as MKB Invest AG, these findings are not merely industrial statistics — they represent structural capital allocation signals.

Lithium: Strategic Concentration Risk

The analysis indicates that Germany’s lithium imports from China have increased significantly over the past decade, while traditional supplier countries such as Chile have declined in relative importance (cf. Deloitte).

At the same time, a substantial share of lithium-ion batteries is imported from China, reinforcing systemic exposure in a sector critical to:

• Electromobility

• Energy storage

• Consumer electronics

• Industrial battery systems

This concentration risk highlights a structural vulnerability in Europe’s energy and mobility transition.

From an investment perspective, lithium supply diversification and upstream participation are no longer optional — they are strategic necessities.

Silicon: Stable Raw Material – Exposed Downstream Value Chain

In contrast, Germany’s raw silicon imports are largely sourced from politically stable countries such as Norway and France (cf. Deloitte).

This provides a comparatively secure foundation for domestic semiconductor ambitions.

However, a majority of finished semiconductors are still imported from Taiwan, Malaysia, and China, creating downstream exposure within the value chain.

This leads to a structural imbalance:

✔ Stable upstream raw material base✖ Geopolitically concentrated downstream production

For investors, this indicates that upstream security does not automatically translate into technological sovereignty.

Strategic Implications for Capital Markets

Industrial value creation in Germany is highly dependent on raw material flows. Automotive, machinery, chemical, and electrical sectors collectively account for a substantial share of GDP and export performance (cf. Deloitte).

The resilience of these sectors is therefore directly linked to:

• Diversified sourcing strategies

• Infrastructure investments

• Risk-mitigated financing structures

• Public-private capital coordination

For MKB Invest AG, the implications are clear:

Raw material security must be understood as a long-term strategic asset class — not merely as an operational procurement issue.

Investment Perspective

Emerging opportunities lie in:

• Upstream raw material projects

• European processing capacities

• Strategic logistics and storage infrastructure

• Publicly supported risk-sharing mechanisms

Raw material dependency is not a temporary disruption — it is a structural condition of modern industrial economies.

Conclusion

The Deloitte analysis underscores a fundamental reality:

Industrial competitiveness and capital stability are increasingly tied to secure raw material access.

For investment actors, the strategic question is no longer whether to engage in resource resilience — but how and at what scale.

Source

Deloitte. Supply Chain Raw Materials Analysis: Industrial Value Creation Dependent on China, Taiwan and Malaysia.