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China Is Said to Halt Exports to U.S. of Some Key Minerals
- kqr2 16y agoThe US actually has a lot of rare earth minerals, however, mining halted in around 2002 because of environmental concerns and cheaper prices from China. Domestic mining will probably pick up again. http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2010/09/chinese-threat-on-rare-earth-minerals.html http://news.sciencemag.org/scienceinsider/2010/09/chinese-th... http://www.molycorp.com/ http://www.molycorp.com/ Also: Throughout the halt on exports of rare earth minerals, China has allowed exports of manufactured products that use them, like powerful magnets, and highly purified rare earth metals. Note that they allow the sale of purified rare earth metals; just not the raw minerals. Also, since a lot of parts and sub-assemblies are made in China, this will probably lessen the impact.
- sasvari 16y agoNote that they allow the sale of purified rare earth metals; just not the raw minerals. Also, since a lot of parts and sub-assemblies are made in China, this will probably lessen the impact. They might just want to have some more elements of the value added chain ... I don't really think they want to mess with Japan, US and Europe at the same time about that issue. But I may be wrong with that ...
- ojbyrne 16y agoThe first paragraph says they've also stopped shipments to Europe.
- cabalamat 16y ago> I don't really think they want to mess with Japan, US and Europe at the same time about that issue. I agree. It wouldn't be in China's interest to piss off everyone else, particularly all at the same time. As you say, China probably just wants to do more value-added stuff.
- deleted 16y ago[deleted]
- baguasquirrel 16y agoThe article mentions that it could take some time for mining to pick up again. Now how would feel about this if we'd outsourced all of our farming to one particular country and that country suddenly decided not to sell us any? Or if a sizable number of them got together to impose an embargo on us? Naturally, this sort of thing is just not meritocratic and leads to higher prices for everyone, but you'd be a talking head if you didn't recognize the limitations to our most cherished ideologies.
- wolfrom 16y agoMore info on rare earth elements: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_earth_element http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rare_earth_element
- noelchurchill 16y agoInternational tensions are rapidly increasing. With currency wars, trade wars, etc, it is going to be very interesting to see how the next few years play out.
- jamesaguilar 16y agoI kind of disagree. On the whole, isn't now essentially the most peaceful time history has ever known?
- ghotli 16y agoThere's war going on somewhere that your media doesn't cover.
- antipaganda 16y agoYeah, but much less than usual. Even in the Congo, Sudan, Somalia and the like it's pretty quiet.
- jamesaguilar 16y agoSo has there always been. Peacefulness as I understand it isn't boolean.
- borism 16y agothat doesn't say anything about continuation of the trend
- ecyrb 16y agoThis week's Economist on the coming currency / trade war: http://www.economist.com/node/17251850?story_id=17251850&fsrc=rss http://www.economist.com/node/17251850?story_id=17251850&... http://www.economist.com/node/17252006?story_id=17252006&fsrc=rss http://www.economist.com/node/17252006?story_id=17252006&...
- proee 16y agoI've often wondered how much of the world's lithium reserves it would take to convert every cars in the world over to EVs with lithium batteries. 0.1%, 5%, 10%? Is it even feasible? And if not, why are people running around promoting their Prius and the like...
- kqr2 16y agoYes, in general, a used fuel efficient gas car is better for the environment since it takes quite a bit of energy to manufacture a Prius. http://www.wired.com/autopia/2008/05/the-ultimate-pr/ http://www.wired.com/autopia/2008/05/the-ultimate-pr/
- pyre 16y agoSo you're comparing a used fuel efficient gas car to a new Prius? Why not compare new-to-new or used-to-used?
- kqr2 16y agoA lot of people who purchase a Prius think they are doing something environmentally friendly. In fact, that's part of Toyota's marketing campagin. Not only that, but the government helps subsidize these purchases by giving tax breaks. If the real goal was to do what's best for the environment, then it's not to buy a brand new hybrid.
- ubernostrum 16y ago"When bought brand-new, it has consumed more energy than it has saved" does not imply "buying this is never the best choice for the environment". Instead, it implies that one should work out where the break-even point -- beyond which the net is savings over a gasoline-powered vehicle -- occurs, whether that point will realistically be reached and passed by the majority of owners, etc.
- joezydeco 16y ago
- binspace 16y agoGood thing the US invaded Afghanistan, I suppose... Afghanistan has lot's of mineral resources. Let the exploitation begin. http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/06/14/say_what_afghanistan_has_1_trillion_in_untapped_mineral_resources http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2010/06/14/say_what_afgh... Hopefully, Afghanistan has a functional (and non-oppressive) government that can stand on it's own soon. That will be tough, if possible, to accomplish.
- loewenskind 16y agoWhy do you think the US went there? Surely you didn't think it had something to do with terrorists?
- redcap 16y agoChina has been stockpiling the rare elements for some time now. They're necessary for a lot of high-tech goods, and would be very useful as a trade lever. Regarding the embargo on Japan, it was seen as a response to the recent territorial disputes over the Senkaku isles. China later stated that they weren't embargoing nuthin', but importers here in Japan were having a lot of problems getting shipments in due to much more strenuous customs inspections, etc. The Japanese response has been to open dialogue with Mongolia about starting mines for rare earth minerals there, as Mongolia are supposed to have a great deal of reserves.
- gamble 16y agoAn embargo like this was inevitable. I'm sure it will not be the last time they reserve a resource for Chinese businesses. Commentators in the west sometimes forget that China is not like western countries; its political elite do not buy into neoliberal ideas and are not easily corrupted to promote American business interests, like in so many of America's trading partners. Simply put, it makes no sense for Chinese representatives to scour the globe snapping up resources if they don't intend to reserve them for Chinese use at below-market rates.
- bd_at_rivenhill 16y agoOne problem with this line of reasoning is that an embargo will cause a trade war, which will reduce demand for Chinese manufactured goods. The end result would be unemployment and social instability, which is the most important thing to be avoided as far as the Party is concerned.
- gamble 16y agoMaybe. So far, China has been able to get away with some stunningly protectionist policies. Keep in mind that there is a significant mercantilist/nationalist faction in the Chinese government that sees the US as a declining power with little leverage over China and a history of accepting one-sided trade with Asian states. They are also playing the long game on this one. It may be enough for now simply to own the resources, and only exploit their control on specific issues like the recent spat with Japan and American pressure on their currency.
- loewenskind 16y agoChina's advantage is that they can sell incredibly cheap products in vast quantities. The west has become utterly dependent on them. What will they do if China pisses them off? They're not going to manufacture at home.
- tyng 16y agoWait, so the US stopped mining rare earth material for environmental concerns, but wants China to mine more of them and export the material to the US - what about the environment in China? And remember when "an incovinient truth" was at its height US officials blamed China for causing so much environmental issues - c'mon, what do you really want them to do? A link in the above article points to another article where there's a similar scenario of trade vs clean energy - isn't government subsidy of clean tech an universally good action for our environment? - http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/business/global/18trade.html http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/18/business/global/18trade.ht...
- oiuytrdrfghj 16y agoSo can't we just say they have weapons of mass destruction and then go and 'liberate' them (and their minerals) ?
- cabalamat 16y agoThe reason the USA can't do the second part is that China actually does have weapons of mass destruction.
- oiuytrdrfghj 16y agoWe could say that they didn't !
- simon1ltd 16y agoWe're only allowed to say that after we invade.