Cost of rare-earth metals pushing up the cost of US gasoline

The skyrocketing cost of rare-earth metals from China is pushing up the cost of gasoline production in the U.S., the latest sign of the wide-reaching impact of Beijing's decision to restrict exports of the minerals.

Prices for some of the chemicals refiners use to process gasoline have risen dramatically after China, which controls about 95% of the world's rare-earth supply, said it would reduce export quotas for the metal by 35% for the first half of 2011. Beijing had already cut quotas by 72% for the second half of 2010. More...