Staying with that ongoing tariff tit for tat,
Beijing appears to have a new card to play
as leverage: rare earth elements.
Our Kim Mok-yeon zooms in on how these items
could impact the two superpower's trade dispute.
There's speculation that rare earth elements
will act as the next bargaining chip for China
in the ongoing trade war with the U.S.,...
after President Xi Jinping visited a local
company specializing in the sector earlier
this week.
Rare earths refers to some 17 chemically similar
metallic elements,...
known for their unique characteristics, especially
their outstanding chemical, magnetic and fluorescent
properties.
They're found in most every day electronics,
such as displays, fluorescent substances,
and even electronic vehicles.
China is the largest source of the minerals,
producing more than 90 percent of the world's
supply... making its dominance clear-cut.
Though Washington also is capable of producing
a relatively small amount, it relies on China
for 80 percent of its rare earths imports,...
making this sector an obvious source of leverage
for Beijing.
In 2010, China banned all of its rare earths
exports to Japan, following a territorial
dispute,... during which a Chinese fishing
boat captain was detained by Tokyo.
Japan quickly released the captain.
But the case was later brought to the World
Trade Organization resulting in a torrent
of Chinese rare earth exports into the market
and an inevitable collapse in prices.
On Beijing's trade dispute with the U.S.,
pundits say Xi Jinping's visit to the local
rare earths factory could be a strategic warning
that it's considering playing the rare earths
card, once again.
However, a trade expert says the possibility
of this actually happening is quite low.
"Definitely, Xi Jinping's visit was a deliberate
act to show such possibility.
Since the U.S. pulled strings through tariffs,
this could be China's way of reacting.
But I think chances are slim because China
is well aware that if they ban rare earths
exports, it would only worsen the situation
for both sides."
Though it’s yet to be seen whether China
will use rare earths as leverage in the trade
dispute with the U.S., concerns have been
raised over the costs of a prolonged trade
war between the two countries.
Kim Mok-yeon, Arirang News.
