China makes plans to horde rare earth metals

It looks as though China is planning on keeping it's supply of rare earth metals which are needed to produce much of our technology. I wonder if this will affect our hobby? It will affect our national defenses in the U.S.. It will affect hybrid as well as diesel vehicles, and much more. Read for yourselves:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...-as-China-eyes-ban-on-rare-metal-exports.html

As far as I'm concerned this just gives the US more incentive to go back to the moon. Loads of whatever we want is there for the taking. Of course, we'll need less expensive ways of getting it back to Earth than rockets. The mass driver concept sounds most promising.

Hooked on Fenix said:

It looks as though China is planning on keeping it's supply of rare earth metals which are needed to produce much of our technology. I wonder if this will affect our hobby? It will affect our national defenses in the U.S.. It will affect hybrid as well as diesel vehicles, and much more. Read for yourselves:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/...-as-China-eyes-ban-on-rare-metal-exports.html

Click to expand...

More importantly:

Mr Stephens said Arafura's project in Western Australia produces terbium, which sells for $800,000 a tonne. It is a key ingredient in low-energy light-bulbs. China needs all the terbium it produces as the country switches wholesale from tungsten bulbs to the latest low-wattage bulbs that cut power costs by 40pc.

Click to expand...

God forbid! Cool article.

Oh £#¤!€!@, what has happened in the past 100 years when some country started doing that with oil etc?!

:touche:

China/India are going to take over the world. I've had investments with them for years and they do better, almost all of the time, than US or European companies (which I dumped last Fall like so many others). And now, now they are REALLY going up. Invest in these countries now folks! And learn to speak the languages!

It seems that this could really effect green technologies. Interesting how China built itself on exports and now that it's industrially large they're having to use some of what was previously exported to sustain it's own body, so to speak.

Intriguing read, thanks.

I agree, China is/will take over the world.

Be prepared, especially if Peak-Oil turns out to be true, ever noticed how nobody is talking about Peak Oil anymore?

There's really no evidence that any country has the desire to "take over the world" in the classical sense. The 20th century imperial model is far too inefficient, static, and costly for the current era. The US is arguably the only remaining example of the old system and there's no indication other nations are rushing to fill its seat. Its all about dynamic multipolarism these days. True, economic power may mostly reside with BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China) but there's a whole host of other countries competing with them as well. Vietnam, Singapore, Turkey, much of South America, the energy rich "stans," etc. As others have said, should be some amazing investment opportunities. Pretty exciting stuff.