China Pledges Rare-Earth Supply as Users Abroad Say Prices Soar

China, producer of more than 90 percent of the world’s rare earths, pledged to maintain supplies as users of the minerals needed for electronics, wind turbines and smart bombs said prices are soaring.

The nation will “continue to supply rare earth to the world” while maintaining restrictions on exports “to protect exhaustible resources and ensure sustainable development,” China’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement yesterday, after the New York Times and China Daily reported that the government plans further export cuts.