TOKYO—The mood among Japan’s big manufacturers’ soured for a second straight quarter in the three months to June, a central bank survey showed on Friday, hit by rising input costs and supply disruptions caused by China’s strict COVID-19 lockdowns. But confidence among big non-manufacturers improved in the quarter, the “tankan” quarterly survey showed, suggesting service-sector…

South Korea has announced its participation in the U.S.-led Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) to cut its heavy reliance on Chinese mineral and raw materials imports. The announcement of joining the MSP came shortly after South Korea’s decision in May to participate in the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF). IPEF outlines the United States’ key priorities…

News Analysis When it comes to supply chains, all roads lead to China, even if the products are “made” elsewhere. A laptop sold in the United States, with a “Made in China” sticker, is assembled in China, and many of the components are also sourced from China. This is the easy part of tracing global…

BEIJING—Growth in China’s June factory activity dipped to a four-month low on higher raw material costs, a shortage of semiconductors, and a COVID-19 outbreak in the major export province of Guangdong, amid wider supply chain disruptions in Asia. The chip supply crunch has hammered other manufacturing powerhouses in Asia. Industrial output in Japan and South…

Canada and the European Union (EU) announced on Tuesday a new strategic partnership on raw materials, aimed at cutting dependency on China for critical mineral supplies. “We as Europeans want to diversify our imports away from producers like China because we want more sustainability, less environmental damage, and we want transparency on raw materials,” Ursula…

Commentary “Today, the data shows a looming mismatch between the world’s strengthened climate ambitions and the availability of critical minerals that are essential to realizing those ambitions,” says Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA). Yet the United States and the world are in the midst of a great “energy transition” to fight…