Do you know that critical minerals such as rare metals and rare earth are used in almost all products that support our daily lives, including electronic and IT devices, automobiles, and medical equipment? These resources, essential components for semiconductors, batteries, and other technologies, are indispensable for sustaining our socio-economic activities.
On the other hand, the countries where these minerals are produced, as well as those carrying out refining and processing, tend to be concentrated in a small number of nations. Overreliance on a limited number of regions may increase the risk of supply disruptions due to local conflicts, socio-economic instability, and trade friction and disputes.
This site allows you to explore the flows of each resource (based on HS codes) between countries using an interactive Sankey diagram. It might serves as an opportunity to learn about how to ensure a stable supply of these critical resources for each country.
(A typical use case for rare metals)
Semiconductor materials: Tungsten, Molybdenum, Tantalum, Antimony
Battery materials: Lithium, Nickel, Cobalt, Manganese
Lightweight alloys: Magnesium
Pharmaceuticals: Bismuth
Nuclear reactor cladding: Zirconium
Aircraft components: Titanium, Tungsten
Lithium is an essential material for batteries, and its demand has surged in recent years due to the growing adoption of electric vehicles. The flows of both exports and imports are highly concentrated among a few countries.
Nickel is also one of the key components of electric vehicle batteries, and Russia had previously held a significant share of global supply. However, due to the invasion of Ukraine and the resulting sanctions, exports from Russia have declined sharply, leading to major changes in the structure of the supply chain.
You can select any countries you like from the dropdown.(Hold Ctrl while selecting on Windows, or Command on Mac.)
Data Source: "UN Comtrade Database" — https://comtradeplus.un.org/