The US is totally dependent on Graphite and Heavy Rare Earths from overseas.

Advances in automotive battery technology are making graphite the next big thing for commodity investors.

There are two ways to visualize the critical metals and industrial minerals sector. Some see a hostile climate, where junior mining companies compete for scarce financing dollars. But there's a sunnier side to this story: More than ever, companies, government and academia are forming partnerships to solve a global problem—the ongoing need for scarce critical materials.

Following up on our last article "Knock-out Criterion for Rare Earth Element Deposits," there were several comments that were noted from our readers, so I took the opportunity to discuss these in greater detail.

China produces over 70% of the world’s graphite and has been tightening exports of the vital mineral for years. Prices have soared exponentially. Manufacturers are worried about supply as Li-Ion batteries actually require more graphite than lithium. Maybe they should be called Li-Graphite Batteries.

There are many aspects to the success of a rare earth element (REE) deposit being developed into a mine. Yet the question arises: Why are so many REE projects not put into production while standing still with “robust” economic studies?

While the market is initially celebrating a historic deal with Iran there may be other geo-political risk factors and doubts that may subdue the celebration. Oil traders are giddy because they believe this will open the door to more Iranian oil.

Tasman appears to be breaking above the three year downtrend on high volume. Major accumulation may forecast a bullish golden crossover indicating that the downtrend may be coming to an end.

If you thought you had rare earth element mining all figured out, think again. But if you're looking for a sector that will nurture your inner nerd, rare earth elements may be the play for you

Tungsten just doesn't have the sex appeal that made investors fall for the rare earth story. But maybe that's its trump card, considering the boom/bust cycle that swept rare earths didn't touch tungsten's slow, steady price increases.