Albemarle's lithium sales surge amid rapid EV market growth

Albemarle, the world's largest producer of lithium, posted a better-than-expected quarterly profit and lifted its annual forecast on Wednesday, citing surging prices and demand for the electric vehicle battery metal.

The results and forecast reflected a bullish outlook for the electric vehicle industry despite recent macroeconomic concerns and warnings of market softness from some rivals. Albemarle counts Tesla and other prominent EV makers as core customers.