A basket of prices for the key electric vehicle battery metal has dropped by more than 60% this year

China has been lowering trade barriers since Albanese took power last year and began moves to stabilize relations with his country's biggest trading partner

Rare earths have emerged as particularly significant to the global clean energy transition as countries around the world race to meet their carbon emissions goals

Shares rose slightly on markets in mainland China but dropped in Hong Kong, while Japan, Seoul and Sydney rebounded after three days of falls; Asian currencies edged higher

Taliban officials have discussed joining China's Belt and Road scheme, plus possible road and rail links and mining deals, but analysts say there are no easy infrastructure options in Afghanistan

Police arrested the chairman of Vietnam Rare Earth JSC (VTRE) — a company at the forefront of the country’s drive to boost its rare earth industry and rival China

Both gallium and germanium are key to chipmaking, and Chinese exporters of the metals now need to obtain an export licence for dual-use items and technologies

China is the world's top graphite exporter and refines more than 90% of the world's graphite into the material used in virtually all EV batteries

China has already claimed exclusive rights to excavate 92,000 square miles of international seabed

Two-day event in Beijing will mark 10th anniversary of infrastructure scheme and may see talks on links to Afghanistan, plus possible mining projects

The move will likely be announced at a summit with the US, which had asked Brussels to move against Chinese steel producers

Australia's richest person is now the largest shareholder in Liontown Resources, which has one of the world's most exciting lithium deposits, as well as contracts to supply Ford and Tesla