The rare-metals war in Asia is heating up; how has China’s control of 99 percent of the metal “iprim” (yttrium / Yttrium) put Japan’s industry on the brink of collapse? Tokyo has only a few short months left before its strategic reserves of “yttrium” are completely depleted; this metal, known for its high resistance to heat, is a key and decisive component in the manufacture of automobiles, aircraft engines and electronic chips (semiconductors).
Japan’s dependence on this metal has exposed the country’s biggest economic vulnerability, as Beijing controls nearly 99 percent of the world’s production and refining of the metal, while Tokyo is absolutely dependent on it because no other alternative exists. But in response to Japan’s political statements on the Taiwan issue, which provoked Beijing’s intense anger, Chinese officials decided to impose strict restrictions on exports of the metal to Japan.
Beijing’s decision sent a major shock through international markets; the price of yttrium oxide outside China increased by more than 179-fold, reaching 1150 dollars per kilogram, while the price of the same metal inside China does not exceed 9 dollars per kilogram.
Faced with this industrial stranglehold, Japan is trying to appeal to the U.S. government to pressure China into easing the restrictions. The main reason Washington is entering this crisis is that cutting off the metal would not only harm Japan, but would also inflict major damage on the U.S. defense industry, because Washington depends in its military and arms sectors on Japanese parts and equipment made using yttrium.
