India, May 10 -- A looming global copper shortage could stall the world's transition to clean energy and digital technologies unless smarter trade and investment strategies are adopted, the UN's trade and development body, UNCTAD, has warned.

In its latest Global Trade Update, released this week, UNCTAD describes copper as "the new strategic raw material" at the heart of the rapidly electrifying and digitising global economy.

But with demand set to rise more than 40 per cent by 2040, copper supply is under severe strain - posing a critical bottleneck for technologies ranging from electric vehicles and solar panels to AI infrastructure and smart grids.

"Copper is no longer just a commodity," said Luz Maria de la Mora, Director of the In...