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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Economics

Theses/Dissertations

2012

Economic Development

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Un-Obtainium: The Quest For Rare Earth Elements, Brahm Heyman Jul 2012

Un-Obtainium: The Quest For Rare Earth Elements, Brahm Heyman

International Political Economy Theses

The 17 "rare earth elements" are essential for the development of new technologies. Over the last several decades, China has established a virtual monopoly on the rare earth industry, producing over 97% of the world's current demand. This was achieved by effectively undercutting other producers who stopped competing in this market. In 2010, in an effort to bolster its domestic market, China decided to reduce the amount of rare earth elements that it would export. This situation can be used to consider China's relations with the rest of the world from two perspectives. (1) The realist perspective views China's actions …


Comparison Of China And Japan’S Economic Development In The Semiconductor Industry, Rundong Ke Jan 2012

Comparison Of China And Japan’S Economic Development In The Semiconductor Industry, Rundong Ke

Senior Projects Spring 2012

While Japan marked its success in surpassing the U.S. to dominate the semiconductor industry in 1986, the Chinese semiconductor industry transformed from a small sector into a global competitor. This thesis tracks and compares the developmental histories of this industry between China and Japan and analyzes the differences in government policy, economic systems, comparative advantage and trade policy in both countries, in order to ascertain the two countries’ industrial development strategies and governments’ impacts on the semiconductor industry. This analysis finds that Japan’s development strategy targeted a knowledge- and capitalintensive industry (semiconductor industry, in this case) by providing preferential assistances …