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Step by step, how China seized control of critical minerals
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China makes 90 per cent of the world’s rare earth magnets, used in electronics and electric motors.
PHOTO: REUTERS
Keith Bradsher
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BEIJING – Starting more than a year ago, China began creating an elaborate set of rules to cast a net over its exports of minerals that the rest of the world cannot live without.
These minerals, mostly so-called rare earth metals, are vital for making a vast array of military and civilian goods, from fighter jets to semiconductors to cars.
