Germany and Japan Discuss Rare Earths; Perth Discusses Rare Sightings of a Parking Space
Chancellor Merz meets Japanese PM Takaichi on critical minerals. Kinross offers its own: one decent pebble.
Rare earth minerals: precious, hard to find, like a space on South Street on a Saturday. Photo: Kgbo, “Disabled parking spaces in car park in Brisbane, 2023”, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi have discussed rare earth minerals and supply chains — the stuff that goes into phones, wind turbines and car batteries and is, according to Perth residents, still easier to find than a parking space on South Street.
“Rare earth? I’ll tell you what’s rare,” said a Perth shopper. “A pay machine that takes cards and gives a receipt. I’d mine that.”
Kinross-shire’s geological community offered its own contribution to global supply chains: “one very nice pebble from Loch Leven, smooth, grey, available immediately”.
Neither leader mentioned Perth, which the city has taken as a sign that its minerals remain a closely guarded secret.
The real story: World news roundup, 29 October (Xinhua)
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