RE:The U.S. Needs To Expand Its Cobalt Reserves Interesting stat in this article, ie. a 20% reduction in cobalt supply to the US would reduce their GDP by 2%. Sounds like now's the time for the US to be proactive in their backyard.
... The United States cannot afford to rely on China for cobalt. Its supply chain is more concentrated and vulnerable than any other critical mineral, and China has repeatedly shown a willingness to cut off mineral access from other nations. In 2010, China banned rare earth shipments to Japan over a fishing dispute, resulting in major price shocks. More recently, the CCP responded to new U.S. semiconductor regulations by imposing export restrictions on gallium and germanium—minerals needed for producing solar panels and cell phones.
Similar restrictions on cobalt would have disastrous long-term consequences for U.S. markets. According to a study conducted by the National Mineral Information Center, just a 20 percent reduction of cobalt supply into the U.S. economy would result in up to a two percent reduction in GDP. China is more than capable of exerting this sort of pressure.
To insulate markets from impending disruption, policymakers should take action by building up the nation’s cobalt reserves. As a first step, Congress can invest in replenishing National Defense Stockpile (NDS) stores, which have fallen to historic lows due to repeated multimillion-dollar sell-offs dating back to the 1990s. Strengthening the NDS will address the most immediate risks of the United States’ cobalt import reliance—and crucially, it will allow for the national defense industrial base to remain operational in an extended conflict with China. ...