Given its rare earth vulnerability, US cannot risk all-out trade war

US President Donald Trump has returned to a trademark policy in announcing a new round of trade confrontation that clearly echoes the conflict he launched in his first term. Officially, the trade war began on January 22, 2018, when he imposed a 30 per cent import tariff on solar panels.
While such measures are usually justified by noble intentions – protecting domestic industries and reviving local manufacturing – in reality, trade wars are often driven by the desire to seize foreign markets and…