The Geopolitics Of Rare Earths

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Adam Minter, Bloomberg: The Geopolitics of 17 Very Obscure Minerals

WNU Editor: Rare earths are critical minerals used in essentially everything. China has a dominant position on these minerals because they subsidize their extraction and production to a level that makes it uneconomical for any other country/company to compete against. Will China's monopoly continue .... probably .... but they are going to be paying dearly to have that "strategic privilege" .... and one that can only be used if they decide one day to use it in a political crisis.

On a side note .... one reason why China has always been accommodating to North Korea is because of this .... North Korea Possesses Two-Thirds Of The World’s Rare Earths.