Given that position, China has control of the global market’s supply and demand. For example, China can undercut new supply sources by flooding the market with a mineral, lowering the price, and making the new project less attractive. China can also do the opposite by imposing sharp limits on supplies available to U.S. companies, hampering... See more

It currently takes more than seven years to secure a permit for mining commodities other than coal or gravel on public land.