BEIJING :China, the world's top processor of rare earths, banned the export of technology to extract and separate the critical materials on Thursday, the country's latest step to protect its dominance over several strategic metals.Rare earths are a group of 17 metals used to make magnets that turn power into
      • lorez@lemm.ee
        713·
        11 months ago

        Yeah stop using them to manufacture goods sold in the West, see how well they fare…

        • arin@lemmy.worldEnglish
          111·
          11 months ago

          Uhh then they have more resources? And we have less affordable goods.

          • AlijahTheMediocre@lemmy.world
            114·
            11 months ago

            The modern Chinese economy is very dependent on trade with the West and other East Asian nations that are generally more favorable of the west.

            Those resources aren’t shit if they can’t make them into shit others will buy.

            • cecinestpasunbot@lemmy.mlEnglish
              32·
              11 months ago

              That’s not really true. Much of China’s economic growth in recent years has been driven by internal demand and not foreign investment.

          • nova_ad_vitum@lemmy.ca
            31·
            11 months ago

            Yes congrats on proving that economics really is a zero-sum game and every econ professor has been wrong this whole time.

  • Jajcus@kbin.social
    193·
    11 months ago

    Isn’t that their long national tradition? Like with paper technology, silk technology or porcelain technology?

  • lntl@lemmy.ml
    82·
    11 months ago

    I wonder when these poor resources will be liberated. The regions in China which have these resources must be freedomized.

  • u_tamtam@programming.dev
    82·
    11 months ago

    No better way to boost diversion, and probably a net win for the planet considering how dirty and environmentally harmful the rare earth supply chain is today.

    • Longpork_afficianado@lemmy.nz
      4·
      11 months ago

      If it were a ban on the rare earth minerals themselves, yes, but a ban on the extraction technologies just secures dependence on Chinese sources.

      The reason China is a major exporter of these minerals has less to do with their availability in China and more to do with their lax environmental regulations, which allow extraction via means that are prohibited in many other countries.

      So preventing their extraction in countries where stricter environmental standards are in place just means more environmental damage.

  • XTornado@lemmy.ml
    105·
    11 months ago

    The pot is boiling, the countdown is starting… We will see how long more until they hit Taiwan.

  • nekandro@lemmy.ml
    22·
    11 months ago

    Anyone who knows anything about China’s REE processing industry should be terrified. They’re so far ahead it’s not even funny.