Rio Tinto buying lithium miner Arcadium for $6.7 billion

• But Rio Tinto believes the energy transition trend will eventually overwhelm today's pricing challenges, referring to the deal as "counter-cyclical expansion."
• It expects the current oversupply, which has been driven by China, to become a shortfall by the end of the decade.

By the numbers: Rio Tinto will pay $5.85 per Arcadium share, which represents a 90% premium to where shares traded before last week's report of a possible deal.

• Arcadium was formed earlier this year via the merger of Livent and Allkem.

The bottom line: This is a giant bet on rising demand, in the face of falling demand.