China’s rare earth industry has critical weakness, researchers warn

China’s dominance in rare earth mining, refining and exports has long been viewed as a strategic advantage. But a new study by Chinese researchers argues that the country’s rare earth industry has its own critical weakness. “China is not in a leading position in mastering key core technologies in certain fields,” the researchers wrote in the paper. Published in the latest issue of the Bulletin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the study shifts the focus away from resource reserves and...