Within its suite of powerful trade weapons, China has one particularly fearsome tool: its ability to restrict foreign access to rare earth metals and the magnets that contain them. … Due to the complexity involved in mining and refining rare earth metals, and getting the end-product up to spec, producing rare earth metals and magnets […]
Reuters | Trump admin blocks tungsten, battery waste exports to boost US minerals supply
Aug 6 (Reuters) – The U.S. Commerce Department said on Thursday it will block exports of tungsten scrap and battery waste, part of a push to boost the domestic recycling industry and critical mineral production. The move, which was expected, comes after President Donald Trump last week signed an order giving federal officials the power […]
Financial Times | Funding gaps hobble western critical mineral objectives, says report
Western critical minerals projects are being hamstrung by public funding gaps, impeding their ability to challenge China’s chokehold on materials essential to tech and defence manufacturing, according to a new report. According to the SAFE Center for Critical Minerals Strategy, an NGO, the west’s ability to boost its supply chains now hinges less on access […]
E&E News | China’s grip on metals puts US on defensive, report says
GREENWIRE | The White House is competing with China to shore up rare earths, but a new report suggests an emerging vulnerability deserves equal attention: metals. Beijing has a vise grip on the processing and refining of steel, aluminum, and copper that’s used to build military equipment, data centers and more. China’s state-backed dominance is […]
Financial Times | Defence groups clamour to delay US ban on Chinese rare earth magnets
Defence companies are pushing Washington to delay a deadline, years in the making and now just months away, banning them from sourcing rare earth magnets from China for the US military. … The change would “allow the United States — not an adversary — to define when, what and how we source materials for our […]
