Amid increasing tensions in the international economic and geopolitical landscape, the strategic significance of resources, especially rare metals and their compounds, has become increasingly prominent, often serving as key bargaining chips in international relations.

On February 4, 2025, China's Ministry of Commerce and General Administration of Customs jointly issued an announcement on implementing export controls on tungsten and related items. APT, as one of 25 rare metal products and technologies, was included in the scope of export controls. This measure has attracted widespread international attention. So, why is China implementing export controls on ammonium paratungstate?

Analysis of latest tungsten market from Chinatungsten Online

Tungsten prices have generally remained stable, with the spot trading atmosphere at a standstill under pressure. This is mainly due to the slightly stronger expectation of market supply growth compared to demand recovery after the Spring Festival, coupled with slight adjustments in the long-term contract prices by tungsten enterprises. Market sentiment has cooled, resulting in increased bargaining space for products.

The metal-insulator transition (MIT) property of vanadium dioxide (VO₂) makes it a crucial functional layer for numerous optoelectronic devices. However, its growth temperature requirement (450°C) and MIT temperature requirement (60°C) limit its compatibility in optoelectronic devices, especially in flexible substrate applications.