China has a monopoly on rare earth elements exports, which play a central role in high-end technologies. Other countries can challenge that at a cost.
Many experts have argued that the concerns over any possible Chinese restrictions on REE exports are far-fetched.
Not that rare
Rare earth elements comprise lanthanum, lanthanide series elements like cerium and neodymium, and scandium and yttrium. They serve a variety of purposes: for instance, scandium is used in aerospace components, promethium in nuclear batteries, gadolinium in cancer therapy, and neodymium in cell phones.
Rainbow Rare Earths Ltd (LON:RBW) is a mining company focussed on production from, and expansion of, the high grade Gakara Rare Earth Project in Burundi, East Africa. With in-situ grades in the range of 47-67% Total Rare Earth Oxide (TREO), Gakara is one of the world’s richest rare earth deposits.