About four years ago, I did some writing (badly) for a small investment firm that was well...obsessed...by two things: natural resources (gold, oil, etc.) and China. Then along came a "crisis" that seemed to be tailor-made for it: China declared an embargo against Japan of REE - rare earth elements. Rare earths like neodymium and dysprosium are powerful ingredients in room-temperature super magnets, rechargeable batteries, wind power generators, hybrid cars, smartphones, and dozens of other high-tech, almost indispensable products, and at the time China controlled more than 90% of the global supply.
The embargo caused an epic freakout among news analysts and the good folks at Anonymous Investments. But in the end it turned out to be a dud.
io9.com has an interesting article about why, and it gives a little insight into how a healthy market can correct itself.
