(Bloomberg). — The World Bank predicts that the decarbonization of the world’s economy will drive a surge in demand for metals for everything, from batteries to wind turbine blades.

Even as consumption growth for other commodities like grain probably will trail off in the next 30 years, metals will remain in high demand, delivering “windfall gains for countries that export them,” the bank’s economists wrote in a report released on Thursday. The adoption of low-carbon power generation “implies a permanent increase in demand for , nickel, cobalt, and lithium, and an eventual drop in the use of fossil fuels.”

This report shows that the outlook for commodities and metals over time has significant implications for developing countries, which, as it turns out, are dependent on exports of raw materials for a large part of their income. 

The bank advised commodity-dependent countries to establish so-called rainy day funds. It also recommended that they avoid accumulation of debt and shun protectionist trade policies during price volatility.  

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