Critical Metal-Export Controls by China Trigger Search for Alternative Supplies
Recently approved import restrictions in China on the rare metals germanium and gallium coupled with a growing risk of future restrictions on critical metal exports have revived global efforts to find alternative supplies. As the world finally begins coming out of a semiconductor chip shortage that slowed down production and increased product prices across industries such as healthcare, consumer electronics and the automotive sector, the recent announcement underscores just how delicate the critical metal supply chain is. China’s ascent to global economic supremacy over the past few decades has seen the Eastern Asian country take control of most of the…