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The world’s sources of critical minerals are increasingly concentrated in just a few countries, most notably China, leaving the global economy vulnerable to supply cutoffs that could disrupt industry and hit consumers with higher prices, a report said Wednesday.The Paris-based International Energy Agency’s report looked at the availability of minerals and metals that may be small in quantitybut large in impact when it comes to shifting the economy away from fossil fuels toward electricity and renewable energy.It found that for copper, lithium, cobalt, graphite and rare earth elements, the average market share of the three top producing countries rose to 86% in 2024 from 82% in 2020.China is the leading refiner for 19 out of 20 strategic minerals studied in the report, and has an average share of around 75%. Indonesia showed strong growth in nickel, a key component in making steel and batteries for electric vehicles.The current trend toward export restrictions and trade disputes increases concerns, the IEA said.“Critical mineral supply chains can be highly vulnerable to supply shocks, be they from extreme weather, a technical failure or trade disruptions,” said IEA executive director Fatih Birol. “The impact of a supply shock can be far-reaching, bringing higher prices for consumers and reducing industrial competitiveness.”Birol cited the energy crisis in Europe after Russia cut off natural gas supplies over the invasion of Ukraine. Another cautionary tale is the global shortage of silicon-based computer chips during and after the pandemic, which disrupted auto production.“The golden rule of energy security is diversification,” Birol told The Associated Press in an interview. “And it goes beyond energy security, it is also economic security.”Market forces are important in developing new sources but won’t be enough. “There is a need for well-designed government policies” in the form of financing and other measures, he said.China is a massive global source of critical minerals required for a wide range of goods that includes computer chips, robots, electric autos, batteries, drones, and military equipment. It also dominates the refining and processing of many of these critical minerals, including lithium, cobalt, graphite and more.China has placed export limits of many of these key products and tightened controls on others as President Donald Trump’s trade negotiations escalate, stifling U.S. industry and the nation’s ability to find quick alternatives. Without access to China’s significant reserves, U.S. manufacturers have a harder time competing amid mounting global supply tensions.Trump has made reducing U.S. dependence on foreign critical minerals a core tenet of his first 100 days back in office as part of a national security and economic resilience agenda.This goes beyond China; the Trump administration finalized a rocky deal with Ukraine granting American access to the nation’s vast mineral resources earlier this month.Trump is also looking to expedite deep-sea mining in international waters, much to the chagrin of environmental groups. He called for a boost in the domestic copper industry in a February executive order alongside other calls for the federal government to fast-track new mine permits; has reviewed a minerals proposal from Congo, a conflict-riddled nation also rich with mineral reserves; and attempted to strong-arm Greenland into providing more of its minerals to the U.S.The IEA report said that global markets were well supplied at the moment and that prices in general have fallen. It warned however that planned production of copper, which is essential for electric wiring and power grids, would not keep pace with demand and predicted a 30% shortfall by 2030. David McHugh and Alexa St. John, Associated Press
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E-Commerce
Congress may stop California from implementing its first-in-the nation rule banning the sale of new gas powered cars by 2035.A Senate vote expected as soon as this week could end the nation’s most aggressive effort to transition toward electric vehicles as President Donald Trump’s administration doubles down on fossil fuels.California makes up roughly 11% of the U.S. car market, giving it significant power to shape purchasing trends. Vehicles are one of the largest sources of planet-warming emissions.The Republican-controlled Congress is targeting three California waivers that set stricter emissions rules than the federal government. The House voted to block them first blocked them several weeks ago, and Senate Majority Leader John Thune said his chamber would take up a similar effort this week, even though the Senate Parliamentarian and the U.S. Government Accountability Office say California’s policies are not subject to the review mechanism used by the House.Thune said California’s “are an improper expansion of a limited Clean Air Act authority and would endanger consumers, our economy, and our nation’s energy supply.”California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state air regulators say what lawmakers are doing is illegal and they will likely sue if the measure advances.Here’s what to know: Why can California set its own standards? The Environmental Protection Agency has let the state adopt stricter emissions for decades, and other states can sign on to those rules.California has some of the nation’s worst air pollution, and the waivers date back to efforts in the 1960s and 1970s to fight smog in Los Angeles.President Donald Trump rescinded California’s ability to enforce its standards during his first term, but President Joe Biden’s administration restored it in 2022. What do the standards do? Newsom, a Democrat, announced plans in 2020 to ban the sale of new gas-powered cars by 2035. State air regulators formalized the rules in 2022, and the federal government allowed them to move forward last year.The rule requires automakers to sell an increasing number of zero-emission cars, pickup trucks and SUVs over the next decade. Electric vehicles would have to make up 43% of new sales by 2027, 68% by 2030 and 100% by 2035. People would still be able to buy used gas-powered cars, plug-in hybrids or hydrogen-powered vehicles.California passed another rule in 2020 to phase out the sale of medium- and heavy-duty diesel vehicles, including box trucks, semitrailers and large pickups. Depending on class, zero-emission trucks will have to make up 40% to 75% of sales by 2035. The Biden administration approved that policy in 2023.The third regulation targeted by Congress would reduce smog-forming emissions from trucks. The rule revamped a testing program to ensure heavy-duty vehicles comply with emissions standards and set stricter standards to limit pollution from nitrogen oxides and particulate matter, which pose public health risks.New York, Colorado and New Mexico are among the states that announced plans to follow all three of the policies. What do the auto and trucking industries say? Several automakers, including Honda, Ford and Volkswagen, signed deals with California to follow some of the state’s tailpipe emission standards. But the companies have not committed to complying with the 2035 mandate on gas-powered cars and did not respond to requests for comment on the Senate’s upcoming vote.The National Automobile Dealers Association urged the Senate to pass the measure.“Banning gas and hybrid cars is a national issue that should be decided by Congress, not an unelected state agency,” Mike Stanton, the group’s president and CEO, wrote in a letter.The Safe Roads Coalition, which represents towing and truck companies, said the medium- and heavy-duty truck rule is unfeasible and should be blocked.“While transitioning combustion engines to electric is well-intended, unworkable regulations threaten roadside services for millions of American motorists,” said Josh Lovelace, the group’s national director. Can the grid handle more electric vehicless? Thune, the Senate majority leader, said the nation’s grid can’t handle California’s plans. It is a concern shared by other critics, who point to California’s struggle several summers ago to maintain consistent power during a heat wave.“Our already shaky electric grid would quickly face huge new burdens from a surge in electric vehicles,” he said in a statement announcing the vote.Newsom’s administration argues the state is on its way to building out an electric grid and charging infrastructure that can support many more electric vehicles. Broadly, California has a goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions across the economy by 2045.But the state remains far short of what is eventually needed. California has about 84,000 public electric vehicle chargers in the state but needs 1.2 million by 2030 to support the EV transition, according to the California Energy Commission. The Trump administration directed states earlier this year to stop spending money approved under Biden to help build electric vehicle charges across the U.S. More than a dozen states are suing the federal government over the effort.Newsom has also recently touted the state’s growing battery storage capacity. Neither the commission nor the California Air Resources Board responded to questions about how much the state’s electric grid must grow to support the power demand expected from the state’s transition. But the state has said it needs at least four times more wind and solar power to meet 2045 energy demands and that the grid must grow at an “unprecedented rate.”Timothy Johnson, a professor of energy and the environment at Duke University, said most regions of the U.S. can generate enough power or add enough to meet EV charging demand, but local power lines and transformers could be overloaded. How are other states responding? Eleven other states, plus Washington, D.C., have adopted California’s plan to phase out new gas-powered cars, according to the air board. Several more have adopted the state’s previous zero-emission vehicle standards.But some of those states are already backing away.Republican Vermont Gov. Phil Scott last week paused enforcement of electric vehicle sales targets that follow California’s, saying the pace wasn’t realistic. In Delaware, Democratic Gov. Matt Meyer has said he wants to rescind the state’s EV mandate. Other states still appear to be moving ahead. Associated Press writers Mary Clare Jalonick, Matthew Daly and Alexa St. John in Washington contributed. Austin is a corps member for The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on X: @sophieadanna Sophie Austin, Associated Press/Report for America
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E-Commerce
Sales at retail giant Target took a dive during the first three months of 2025 and executives have indicated that boycotts over its rollback on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices are at least partially to blame. On Wednesday, the chain cut its full-year sales outlook. Compared to this time last year, Target’s first-quarter sales fell by 2.8%, failing to meet Wall Streets expectations. According to a consensus estimate cited by CNBC, analysts were expecting adjusted earnings per share of $1.61. Target reported adjusted EPS of $1.30. Months ago, Target stepped away from DEI, bowing to President Trump, who has made anti-DEI initiatives a cornerstone of his second-term agenda. Target’s move did not go unnoticed by loyal shoppers. In the wake of the decision, many called for boycotts, and some vowed to shop only at stores that stand for equality. Sales fell, as did Target’s stock, which has tanked at least 40% over the last year, as Fast Company‘s Elizabeth Segran reported recently. ‘We’re not happy with that’ Of its latest dip in revenue, CEO Brian Cornell told reporters, per CNBC, that the company only held market share in 15 of the 35 merchandise categories that it tracks internally, meaning the Target brand is falling behind competitors. Were not happy with that, Cornell said. Weve got to be growing [market] share in 60, 70, 80% of those categories.” Cornell also said that in order to address the impact of tariffs, the brand is “constantly adjusting pricing.” He said, Some are going up, some will be reduced, but thats an ongoing effort that takes place each and every day. But the CEO pointed to other issues impacting sales, too, like “declining consumer confidence,” and, perhaps the most impactful, the brand’s move away from DEI. He referred to the major blowback somewhat gently as “the reaction to the updates we shared on belonging in January. However, the fallout for Target has been anything but gentle. While many companies stepped away from DEI programs after Trump came into office this January, boycotts have seemed to hit Target harder. Jamal Bryant, the Atlanta-based pastor who helped kick-start the Target boycott, previously told Fast Company that he believes it’s because the move demonstrated the brand’s previous commitments to Black-owned brands were perhaps merely performative. Weve never asked Target for a handout; we were looking for a handshake, Bryant said. And for Target to withdraw that hand so suddenly was disappointing. Target’s numbers certainly seem to underscore that consumer dissatisfaction. Its net sales for the first quarter were $23.8 billion, down from $24.5 billion for the same period last year. Target shares (NYSE: TGT) were down around 6% in early trading Wednesday. The stock has tumbled more than 32% year to date.
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E-Commerce
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