Hungry China

China's voracious appetite for resources continues unabated: securing a $41bn natural gas deal in Australia, restarting oil exploration in São Tome and Principe off the West African coast, and apparently even hoarding rare earth metals.

Update: Apparently the China doesn't have a complete monopoly on rare earth metals, as the linked article suggested - a California mine appears to be reopening and other potential sites and Canada and Australia are being investigated.