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The end of the gadget bonanza? China warns it is running out of the raw materials that power our mobiles, X-Ray machines, computers and cameras
By Eddie Wrenn PUBLISHED: 14:25 GMT, 20 June 2012 | UPDATED: 16:26 GMT, 20 June 2012 China's rare earth reserves account for approximately 23 percent of the world's total - but are being excessively exploited, the Chinese government has said. Although 23 per cent is a high percentage for one nation to possess, China supplies over 90 percent of rare earth products on the global market. We need the raw materials - chemicals such as yttrium, which is used in TVs, or lanthanum, used for camera lenses - for the modern tools we use everyday. This runs the risk that if China starts reducing its output, we may see spiralling prices for our modern accessories - or even simply be able to produce them in the first place. ![]() According to the white paper titled 'Situation and Policies of China's Rare Earth Industry', the country has 'paid a big price' for problems in its rare earth industry like excessive exploitation, environmental damages, unhealthy industrial structure, under-rated prices and rampant smuggling. China has seen rare earth reserves keep declining in major mining areas, with the reserve-extraction ratio of ion-absorption rare earth mines in southern provinces slumping to 15 from 50 two decades ago, the white paper said. ![]() In North China's Baotou city, only one-third of the original volume of rare earth resources is still available in the main mining areas, it added. Meanwhile, outdated production processes and techniques have severely damaged the environment, the white paper said, noting that excessive mining has resulted in landslides and pollution emergencies and even major disasters in some places. Besides, the industry is also plagued by over-capacity in low-end product manufacturing and the fact that prices of rare earth products fail to reflect their value and scarcity despite a gradual rise since the second half of 2010, according to the white paper. Rising demand for rare earth products has fueled smuggling, with the volume of rare earth products imported from China calculated by foreign customs reaching 1.2 times the export volume counted by the Chinese customs in 2011, the white paper said. China is the world's largest producer of rare earths, a group of 17 metals vital for manufacturing products ranging from smart phones, wind turbines, electric car batteries to missiles. SO WHAT ARE RARE EARTH MATERIALS? Rare Earth materials, as there name implies, are found on Earth. They may not necessarily be rare, but they can be tough to harvest as they can be spread throughout the world's crust. This is a full list of rare earth materials, many of which are mined and sold in China.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2162163/China-Nation-23-worlds-rare-earth-materials-supplies-90-market.html |
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#2 |
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Maybe they can find some "rare earths" in that man's 100 pound scrotum...
http://gold-silver.us/forum/showthre...-Surgery-Offer |
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Translation: the price is going to go up. OR, they will ban exports of the raw materials, and the only way to get it, is to manufacture (value add) the product in China. |
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#7 |
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News Summary: China defends curbs on rare earths
The Associated Press Published: Wednesday, Jun. 20, 2012 - 9:14 am ENVIRONMENTAL EXCUSE? A China Cabinet official rejected complaints that Beijing is using the environment as an excuse to support fledgling Chinese producers of rare-earth products by limiting supplies to foreign rivals. RARE COMMODITY: China has about a third of the world's rare-earth deposits but accounts for over 90 percent of their production. Beijing alarmed global manufacturers by imposing export quotas in 2009. TRADE TIFF: The U.S., EU and Japan filed WTO complaints in March accusing Beijing of violating commitments to the free-trade body. They say export limits raise rare-earth prices abroad and give China buyers an unfair advantage. Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/06/20/457...#storylink=cpy |
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