US EditionEU says must 'step up' against China rare earths 'racket'
The EU plans a European Centre for Critical Raw Materials and joint purchasing to reduce reliance on China, which controls 70% of mining and 90% of refining, Séjourné said.
- On Tuesday, Stéphane Séjourné urged the EU to `step up` and `redouble its efforts` to reduce strategic dependence on China, calling Beijing's export curbs a `racket` and condemning licence demands.
- Beijing's early-April restrictions, followed by October curbs requiring licences since April, rattled markets until a one-year suspension; Séjourné warned Europe was `directly targeted` by China's controls.
- Next week the European Commission will propose creating a European Centre for Critical Raw Materials, modelled on Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation, to speed joint purchasing, boost production, and recycling.
- Erratic licensing and export curbs have rattled supply chains for automotive, energy and defence sectors, forcing many EU industries to suspend or delay production.
- Séjourné has prepared a plan to end the 27-nation bloc's dependence on China, to be announced on December 3, saying `The cost of independence is high` but the EU will mobilise trade tools, bolster recycling and work with trusted third-country partners.
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33 Articles
Europe’s Achilles’ heel: how rare earths leave the EU wide open to economic blackmail from China
Pla2na/ShutterstockIn recent years, rare earth elements have become the focal point of renewed competition between the world’s major powers. These materials are crucial to the manufacture of all manner of products, ranging from weapons to medical products, AI hardware and cars. In this new panorama, the United States and Europe are at a disadvantage, as China controls as much as 90% of the global trade in rare earths. This is largely because it …
European Union (EU) industry chief Stephane Sejourne said on Tuesday that the community must do more to reduce its dependence on China's rare earth elements, the exports of which Beijing imposes restrictions.
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EU says must 'step up' against China rare earths 'racket'
The European Union must ramp up efforts to break its dependence on China for rare earths faced with export curbs that amount to a "racket" by Beijing, the bloc's industry chief Stephane Sejourne said Tuesday.
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