China's Rare Earth Retaliation: A Risky Gambit
Summary
China's retaliation against US tariffs by restricting rare earth mineral exports may backfire, as these elements are not truly rare, and the US could increase domestic mining or reduce reliance on them, mitigating the impact on high-tech products that use small quantities.
Key Points
- China is limiting US access to critical rare earth minerals in retaliation for Trump's tariffs, but this tactic may not be as effective as intended
- Rare earth elements are not as rare as the name suggests, and the US and other countries could ramp up domestic mining or reduce dependence on them
- While rare earths are used in many high-tech products, those items typically only contain small quantities, so the impact of losing access would be somewhat manageable