This index measuring the prices in China of 21 rare earth oxides and combination products was published by the Association of China Rare Earth Industry….reports Asian Lite News
The price of rare earth hit a record high this week after demand outpaced supply in the world’s top producer China, media reports said on Thursday.
Rare earth elements are produced in a handful of countries and play an essential role in technology, from microchips to speakers to X-ray imaging.
The rate of rare earth oxides and combination products rocketed 99% from about this time last year, setting a new record, Caixin Global reported.
This index measuring the prices in China of 21 rare earth oxides and combination products was published by the Association of China Rare Earth Industry.
The average spot price of a light variety of rare earth — neodymium-praseodymium oxide on Wednesday was up 135% year-on-year at USD 173,315 per ton, according to data from the Shanghai research institute.
China holds 44 million tons of rare earth reserves, accounting for 36.7 per cent of the global stockpile. In 2020, China produced 140,000 tons of rare earth, accounting for nearly 60 per cent of global output, reported Global Times.
Analysts say China’s dominance of rare-earth metals gives it a trump card in its rivalry with the US and it has shown a willingness to weaponize the trade.
The US and its allies are increasingly concerned China may choke off access to the metals, which are vital to the functioning of a variety of cutting-edge technologies.
US COMPETES Act
China has termed America’s COMPETES Act as Washington yet another information war against Beijing.
Earlier this month, the US House of Representatives passed the America COMPETES Act, a bill focusing on US semiconductor production and supply chains, reported Beijing News.Net.
The Chinese publication claimed that the “industrial” act includes actions to hold China “accountable” for genocide and slave labour, according to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and specifically allocates 500 million US dollars for media outlets to smear China.
China claims that this bill echoes the US Innovation and Competition Act of 2021, another hawkish bill against China passed by the US Senate in June 2021, which authorized 300 million dollars to be appropriated for each fiscal year through 2026 to counter China’s influence globally.
The Chinese publication said that Washington has been implementing intricate plans to boost the so-called “China threat” narratives and “combat Chinese disinformation” via the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labour, and the Agency for Global Media, its state-run foreign media service.
In September 2021, the largest Zimbabwean daily newspaper The Harald claimed that the United States is funding and training local reporters to produce anti-China stories and discredit Chinese investments.
As per the Beijing News.Net report, some private media journalists were told to portray Chinese companies investing in Zimbabwe as “causing harm to communities, environment and workers,” receiving payment of 1,000 dollars per story from the US embassy through its proxy. (ANI)
