Did China just put Tungsten in their crosshairs?

Tony Adcock, Executive Chairman of Tungsten Metals Group Ltd (proposed ASX Code TME) speaks with STK Markets to draw our attention to a hidden detail in the announcement by China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) and the General Administration of Customs announced on Thursday 16 August 2024 of the joint decision to impose export controls on Antimony and related items. Suggesting Tungsten and smelting of may soon be on their list of restricted items for export. The MOFCOM spokesperson said that this measure was announced to be aimed to further protect China's national security and interests and fulfill the nation's international non-proliferation obligations, and will take effect from September 15. Responding to media questions about the new restrictions, a spokesperson of the MOFCOM said on Thursday that implementing export controls on antimony, superhard materials and related items is an internationally accepted practice. According to AP this announcement will govern not just the export of Antimony but also effecting smelting and super-hard metals.
( https://apnews.com/article/china-anti...)

A super-hard material is a material with a hardness value exceeding 40 gigapascals when measured by the Vickers hardness test. On the Vickers scale, tungsten scores between 880-1510 VHN and is this clearly classified as a super-hard material. TME’s relevance as the only non China or Russia tungsten processing facility that has meaningful capacity (no others outside China or Russia are able to process more than 500 tonnes of Tungsten per annum) place it front and centre as a facility of geopolitical importance.