Japan is arranging to help domestic firms secure critical minerals such as rare earths by financially supporting their mining and refining businesses, as China, rich in such resources, tightens its export controls, a government source said Wednesday…The aid, likely in the form of investments and subsidies, is part of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's pledge to boost what she describes as "crisis management investment."...To prevent shortages of strategically important minerals essential for a wide range of high-tech goods, the government will also promote measures to diversify their suppliers and build sufficient stockpiles, the source said…Resource-scarce Japan currently needs to rely on imports from China and other countries to secure critical minerals, which are also used in making semiconductors and cars.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has suspended activities at a Chinese-operated mining site in the south of the resource-rich country after a spill, mines minister Louis Watum Kabamba said late on Thursday…Congo Dongfang International Mining (CDM), which mainly sources copper and cobalt from the Central African country, is a unit of China's Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt…He said that the company does not meet environmental standards, causing water pollution and exposing the population to serious health risks…The three-month suspension can be extended if necessary, he added…"CDM must fully repair the environmental damage, ensure the remuneration of its staff, compensate the affected populations, and strictly comply with the requirements of the Mining Code," Watum said, adding that an investigation would be conducted into the incident.

General Motors has directed several thousand of its suppliers to scrub their supply chains of parts from China, four people familiar with the matter said, reflecting automakers’ growing frustration over geopolitical disruptions to their operations…GM executives have been telling suppliers they should find alternatives to China for their raw materials and parts, with the goal of eventually moving their supply chains out of the country entirely, the people said. The automaker has set a 2027 deadline for some suppliers to dissolve their China sourcing ties, some of the sources said…Geopolitical tensions between the two superpowers have left car executives in triage mode throughout 2025. U.S. President Donald Trump’s on-again, off-again tariffs and bouts of industry panic over potential rare-earth bottlenecks and computer-chip shortages have auto companies rethinking their ties to China, long an important source of parts and raw materials…The GM effort targets parts and materials that go into cars built in North America, where the company makes the majority of its vehicles globally. GM prefers to obtain parts from North American factories for vehicles built in the region but is open to non-U.S. supply lines outside of China, the sources said…Shilpan Amin, GM’s global purchasing chief, said at a conference last month that the risk of supply disruptions has forced the automaker to move away from simply tapping the lowest-cost countries…“Resiliency is important — making sure you have more control over your supply chain and you know exactly what is coming where,” he said…In April, China clamped down on exports of parts that contain rare-earth elements that are used extensively inside cars, sending auto companies racing to stockpile components. In October, China added restrictions on shipments of more rare-earth elements.