The difference between Stone Age and modern times: technology metals and rare earth elements.
No teenager without smartphones, no pensioners without computers, no new cars without LEDs, no living room without flat-screen TVs. There hasn’t been a time like today where life changes so fast. Technology metals and rare earth elements have played an essential part in this. Without these resources, all the above-named high-tech products would not exist.
You do not need to be a prophet to foresee a strong rise in demand resulting from a rapid technological progress, especially as there is a large bent-up demand in many countries. Additionally, the constantly growing world population and the change of many emerging markets into prospering industrialized countries will affect the need of these sought-after raw materials.
Technology metals and rear earths are running low. Firstly, this is caused by an uneven distribution of raw materials: the mining of these resources often is focussed on few specific states. Up to 80% of technology metals as well as 90% of mined rare earth elements come from China alone. Moreover, China is building up strategic reserves of raw materials. Thus, the offer of strategic metals will additionally be limited and many European high-tech companies will be facing completely new challenges. Recycling measures of a few raw materials already have an important contribution to sufficiently supply the markets.