United Kingdom: Relying on China is a big mistake

Last week Beijing briefly suspended rare-earth exports to Japan during a diplomatic row, an action that should serve as a wake-up call to the rest of the world, said Geoffrey Lean in The Daily Telegraph.

Geoffrey Lean

The Daily Telegraph

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China’s bounty isn’t due to any natural monopoly—it has only a third of world reserves—but to the fact that it underpriced the competition to gain control of the market. The U.S. has the second-largest volume of known rare-earth deposits, but it abandoned its own industry because it’s cheaper to import from China. The Indiana factory that once produced rare-earth magnets for U.S. smart bombs “now houses Coco’s Canine Cabana, a day-care center for dogs.”

The danger of relying on China is all too evident: China will soon need its entire supply of rare earths to satisfy domestic demand, and it won’t shrink from using its “near monopoly” to advance its agenda. Last week Beijing briefly suspended rare-earth exports to Japan during a diplomatic row. That should serve as a wake-up call to the rest of the world.