The Chinese Xi administration may choose to leverage its state dominance of rare-earth elements to better balance the current Sino-U.S. trade war.

Dan Rochefort

2019-06-13 10:26:00 Thu ET

The Chinese Xi administration may choose to leverage its state dominance of rare-earth elements to better balance the current Sino-U.S. trade war. In recent times, President Xi visits a Jiangxi hardware factory that spins rare earth elements into permanent magnets in iPhones, electric cars, wind turbines, and military missiles. China monopolizes 80% of the strenuous extraction of 17 vital rare-earth elements for ubiquitous applications from consumer electronic technology to military defense. Although the raw ores are as common as copper and lead, rare-earth ores oxidize quickly and their extraction can cause severe pollution. With its low labor costs and lax environmental regulations, China has become the dominant force in the rare-earth market since the 1980s. With almost half of global rare-earth deposits, China produces 120,000 metric tons of rare-earth per annum, or about 80% of the global supply. Australia is the second largest supplier of only 20,000 metric tons of rare-earth per year.

The Chinese Xi administration has a strategic incentive to reduce the quota of rare-earth elements for better environmental protection. The next quota reset is due in June 2019, and this reset can indicate whether China intends to leverage its rare-earth quasi-monopoly to counteract the Trump tariff tactic.

 


If any of our AYA Analytica financial health memos (FHM), blog posts, ebooks, newsletters, and notifications etc, or any other form of online content curation, involves potential copyright concerns, please feel free to contact us at service@ayafintech.network so that we can remove relevant content in response to any such request within a reasonable time frame.

Blog+More

IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath predicts no global recession with key downside risks at this delicate moment.

Charlene Vos

2019-04-29 08:35:00 Monday ET

IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath predicts no global recession with key downside risks at this delicate moment.

IMF chief economist Gita Gopinath predicts no global recession with key downside risks at this delicate moment. First, trade tensions remain one of the key

+See More

Incoming New York Fed President John Williams suggests that it is about time to end forward guidance.

Becky Berkman

2018-05-13 08:33:00 Sunday ET

Incoming New York Fed President John Williams suggests that it is about time to end forward guidance.

Incoming New York Fed President John Williams suggests that it is about time to end forward guidance in order to stop holding the financial market's han

+See More

We share Warren Buffett's famous quotes on fundamental stock investment.

Charlene Vos

2017-07-19 11:35:00 Wednesday ET

We share Warren Buffett's famous quotes on fundamental stock investment.

This brief article encapsulates the timeless wisdom of Warren Buffett's famous quotes on fundamental stock investment, fear and greed, patience, risk co

+See More

Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (FAANG) have been the motor of the S&P 500 stock market index.

Dan Rochefort

2018-06-11 07:44:00 Monday ET

Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (FAANG) have been the motor of the S&P 500 stock market index.

Facebook, Apple, Amazon, Netflix, and Google (FAANG) have been the motor of the S&P 500 stock market index. Several economic media commentators contend

+See More

Nir Eyal and Ryan Hoover explain why keystone habits lead us to purchase products, goods, and services in our daily lives.

Fiona Sydney

2025-07-26 09:26:00 Saturday ET

Nir Eyal and Ryan Hoover explain why keystone habits lead us to purchase products, goods, and services in our daily lives.

Nir Eyal and Ryan Hoover explain why keystone habits lead us to purchase products, goods, and services in our lives. The Hooked Model can help shine new lig

+See More

The Biden Inflation Reduction Act is central to modern world capitalism.

Andy Yeh Alpha

2023-02-28 11:30:00 Tuesday ET

The Biden Inflation Reduction Act is central to modern world capitalism.

The Biden Inflation Reduction Act is central to modern world capitalism. As of 2022-2023, global inflation has gradually declined from the peak of 9.8% d

+See More