The Great Un-Outsourcing
For decades, America and the West were quite happy to let China do the dirty work of digging up and processing rare earth elements. These seventeen metals are the secret sauce in everything from your smartphone to the guidance system on a fighter jet. The problem, which has become painfully obvious, is that letting a strategic rival control 85% of a critical supply chain is, to put it mildly, a bit daft. It’s like handing the only set of keys to your factory to the competition.
The US government has finally woken up to this reality. This isn't just about one mine, it's about rebuilding an entire industrial capability from scratch. And when the government puts its full weight behind something, it creates a powerful tailwind for the companies involved. This is where the investment opportunities in this theme start to look interesting, especially for those of us watching from the UAE and MENA markets.