Robot Density in the Manufacturing Industry by Country: Chart

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Robots are increasingly deployed in industrial settings as the cost has fallen by 50% over the past 30 years according to an article at Blackrock’s iShares. In some countries rising aging population leads to labor shortages. The usage of automation via robots increases in these countries to alleviate the effects of declining labor. For example, South Korea and Japan are big users of robots due to declining population.

The following chart shows Robot Density in the Manufacturing Industry as of 2021:

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Source: Investing in robotics: why now could be the right time, iShares

The full article is worth a read.

Earlier:

Related:

The Mohs Mineral Hardness Scale: Infographic

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Diamond is the hardest metal in the world. Hence it is widely used in many industrial applications than just in jewelry. Since it is so hard diamond is used to scratch other metals. Of course in the jewelry world a diamond has no match in terms of beauty and value.

The next hardest metals in the world are Corundum and Topaz.

How about other metals?

The following neat infographic from Compound Interest shows the details:

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Source: The Mohs Hardness Scale: Comparing the hardness of minerals, Compound Interest

Below is a brief excerpt from the infographic description:

Diamond is commonly known to be the hardest material, but how do other minerals compare with each other? That’s the question the Mohs hardness scale, introduced by Friedrich Mohs in 1812, aims to answer. This graphic looks at his scale and where different minerals and other substances appear on it.

Mohs’ scale is a simple way of comparing the hardness of different minerals. The scale is built on comparisons — a mineral that scratches another is designated as having a higher value for hardness. These values are essentially a giant ranking system, in that they’re all relative. There’s no fixed value of hardness between the different numbers in the scale — in fact, diamond at 10 is several times harder than corundum at 9, but corundum is only around twice as hard as topaz at 8.

Quick Note on Two TIPS ETFs

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Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS) are a type of security sold by the US Treasury. They sell for a term of 5, 10 or 30 years. TIPS offer many advantages to investors including as a hedge against inflation, diversification benefits and tax efficiency. During times of inflation, TIPS can provide higher levels of income and higher total return than other nominal treasuries since TIPS adjust for inflation. Below is a brief description of TIPS from Treasury Direct site:

As the name implies, TIPS are set up to protect you against inflation.

Unlike other Treasury securities, where the principal is fixed, the principal of a TIPS can go up or down over its term.

When the TIPS matures, if the principal is higher than the original amount, you get the increased amount. If the principal is equal to or lower than the original amount, you get the original amount.

TIPS pay a fixed rate of interest every six months until they mature. Because we pay interest on the adjusted principal, the amount of interest payment also varies.

You can hold a TIPS until it matures or sell it before it matures.

Source: Treasury Direct

The following chart shows the performance of TIPS in terms of income generated by inflation-protected securities based on  iShares TIP ETF, TIP and iShares U.S. Treasury Bond ETF, GOVT:

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Source: 3 reasons investors should consider TIPS — even if inflation slows down, iShares

Two TIPS ETFs:

Two of the largest TIPS ETFs on the market are the iShares TIPS Bond ETF (TIP) and the iShares 0-5 Year TIPS Bond ETF (STIP).

The iShares TIPS Bond ETF (TIP) has an asset base of over $22.0 billion as of Feb 3, 2023 and the expense ratio is 0.19%. It closed at $108.21 on Friday. The ETF is up by 2.62% YTD.

The iShares 0-5 Year TIPS Bond ETF (STIP) has an asset base of over $13.0 billion as of Feb 3, 2023 and the expense ratio is 0.03%. It closed at $97.54 on Friday. The ETF is up by 1.07% YTD.

Disclosure: No positions