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Mineral Dependency in an Age of Trade War
The U.S. imports nearly all of its critical minerals — now it’s taxing them too.
The Trump administration’s latest round of tariffs is drawing scrutiny, but the real concern isn’t just the cost of Chinese EVs — it’s the impact on the materials those tariffs affect. Nickel, cobalt, and platinum-group elements (PGEs) are indispensable to the U.S. economy, yet the country is overwhelmingly reliant on imports, often from nations it is now targeting with trade restrictions. These metals power everything from electric vehicle batteries to jet engines and oil refineries, but the new tariffs raise questions about whether the U.S. is inadvertently deepening its supply chain crisis.
Lyle Trytten, better known as ‘The Nickel Nerd,’ recently highlighted the issue on LinkedIn, noting that the U.S. has now placed itself at odds with countries that supply 60 to 80 percent of its nickel, cobalt, and PGEs. With Canada, Mexico, China, Europe, and South Africa all facing some degree of friction, the supply chains underpinning critical industries are under strain. The question now is not whether disruptions will occur, but how severe the consequences will be.
The United States currently depends on foreign sources for between 70 and 100 percent of its supply of these critical minerals…
