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None R&D | Jung-hwan Lee, the President of KIMS, gave a lecture on rare metal value chain and market trends

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Date22-07-27 14:35 Hit362

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Jung-hwan Lee, the President of KIMS, gave a lecture on rare metal value chain and market trends

Time to prepare the preemptive measures for the global rare earth industry crisis!


 

Jung-hwan Lee, the President of the Korea Institute of Materials Science(KIMS), gave an online lecture for the seminar of the consultative body of supply chain monitoring based on public-private partnership in China held on Tuesday, July 19. Under the theme of the rare metal value chain and market trends, he introduced rare metal types and value chain analysis, their use and supply-demand situation, China's policy direction, and response to major global issues.


The lecture was for the officials from Korean institutions and local investment companies located in Chengdu and Chongqing, major mineral production (processing) areas in China. Lee was invited to the seminar which aims to provide an opportunity to learn about the issues of the Korean institution, rare metal value chains, and market trends. 


Rare metals are metal elements that are difficult to produce or extract due to their small amount in the earth’s crust but are in high industrial demand or expected to incline the demand in the future compared to other metal resources. Although there is no unified standard worldwide, about 30 types are classified and selected according to each country’s industrial characteristics. Currently, in Korea, 56 rare metals of 35 species are selected for special management. 


Currently, the hegemonic competition between the US and China is intensifying, and the two countries are reorganizing their supply chains for important items in their national security strategy. In particular, as rare or core materials are being used as strategic weapons in international conflicts such as Japan's export restrictions and China's ban on rare earth metals export to Japan, the weaponization of rare earth resources is a growing problem. 


In the lecture, Jung-hwan Lee, the President of KIMS, emphasized, “China's political goals and industrial policy goals have greatly impacted the global rare earth industry. Korea also needs to actively respond to this and prepare a solution from the political, industrial, and economic aspects.” 



Jung-hwan Lee, the President of KIMS, gave a lecture on rare metal value chain and market trends