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J

anuary

2011

67

G

lobal

M

arketplace

“Where there are only speculators, the real economic foundation

has been lost,” said Mr Bruederle. China controls up to 97%

of world production of rare earths – among them samarium,

scandium and yttrium – and, as noted by

Journal

reporters

Beate Preuschoff and Patrick McGroarty, the Chinese export

quotas for 2010 were nearly exhausted when Mr Bruederle

spoke. The materials are essential to the manufacture of a

range of products including electric motors, TV screens, and

mobile phones.

Hans-Peter Keitel, president of the Federation of German Industries,

said procuring rawmaterials had become more difficult for Germany’s

manufacturing base, and he urged industry and government to work

together to combat the trend. “Raw materials are no longer just

a question of procurement,” Mr Keitel said. “They have gradually

become a geopolitical issue.” Noting the particular difficulty of

obtaining rare earths, Mr Keitel then brought up another worry for

German companies: the danger that “our industrial manufacturers

will go where the raw materials are on hand.”

Meanwhile, Beijing has signalled that it may further cut rare-

earth exports this year. And Ms Preuschoff and Mr McGroarty

observed that delays in current shipments from China have added

to the anxieties. Pascal Lamy, general secretary of the World Trade

Organization, has said the WTO has no authority to act on raw

materials as such.

Automotive

The EU’s carbon dioxide reduction

targets are being met handily, suggesting

that the deadlines for compliance are too

generous

European car makers are set to achieve mandatory European

Union targets for new-car carbon dioxide emissions years ahead

of time, according to a report published 4 November by Transport

& Environment. Based in Brussels, T&E is an independent pan-

European association promoting sustainable transport at the EU

level.

The study’s findings suggest that car makers exaggerated the time

needed to comply with CO

2

limits for cars. One producer, Toyota,

was found to have almost met its target for the year 2015, six

years in advance. Therefore, according to T&E, targets now under

discussion for vans should be tightened.

Car makers recorded a record drop of 5.1% in average CO

2

emissions in 2009. T&E notes that many analysts and commentators

attribute this mainly to the combined effect of the economic crisis and

government subsidies for new cars: so-called “scrappage schemes.”

Together, these shifted consumer demand towards cheaper and

typically smaller (hence more efficient) cars.

But T&E asserts that neither was the major factor in the CO

2

reductions recorded in 2009. Rather, it concludes that more than

half of those reductions – accounting for close to a 3% improvement

in average efficiency – were achieved not by selling smaller cars but

through better technology.

The report found that five companies (Toyota, Suzuki, Daimler, Ford

and Mazda) achieved more than 3% CO

2

reductions though the

application of new technology. Three companies (Hyundai, Suzuki

and Fiat) achieved the same result by means of subsidy-assisted

sales of smaller vehicles. Suzuki, which applied both methods,

properly belongs in both lists.

On publication of the report Jos Dings, the director of Transport &

Environment, said: “These data show that the big improvement in

fuel efficiency [in 2009] was not just a one-off caused by a shift to

smaller cars. Car makers are adding fuel-saving technologies.

So the trend of reduced carbon dioxide emissions is structural and

will therefore continue when the market returns to normal.”

The T&E findings show that Toyota made the most progress

in 2009, cutting CO

2

emissions by 10%, and is now closest to

achieving its target for 2015. BMW, the company that with its “efficient

dynamics” programme made the most progress in 2007 and 2008,

achieved just a 2% reduction in emissions in 2009.

Volkswagen Group, Europe’s biggest-selling car maker, disappointed

in 2009 both in fleet average CO

2

(12

th

of 14) and in year-on-year

progress (10

th

of 14) despite having several individual models with

very competitive CO

2

ratings.

According to T&E, it appears that relative to other car makers

Volkswagen keeps the percentage of its most fuel-efficient vehicles

low. This would explain why the average new car from the VW

Group still has higher CO

2

emissions than the average BMW despite

being 8% lighter and 27% less powerful.

Elsewhere in automotive . . .

The Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (AMWU) blamed

the high Australian dollar for a decision by Caterpillar to shift

manufacture of mining trucks overseas.As reported byWill Ockenden

of the Australian Broadcasting Corp (11 November), the big yellow

The EU’s carbon dioxide reduction targets have been met with ease