A recent report from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy suggests that policymakers in the United States and allied countries should start bolstering raw materials supply chains to reduce the country’s dependence on rare earths from China.
The dossier notes that the China Rare Earth Group, a merger of three of China’s state-owned enterprises into one mega-conglomerate, controls up to a quarter of global mineral-bearing rare-earth elements.
Combined with China’s overall dominance in rare-earth minerals and materials—roughly 60% of world production—the merger grants Chinese central planners significant pricing power and influence over world supply.
“Whether China would weaponize their leverage over rare-earth supply chains in direct conflicts with the US and/or its allies is a matter of speculation and debate,” the report reads.
For the rest of this article: https://www.mining.com/us-allies-should-disconnect-rare-earths-supply-chain-from-china-report/