Albanese’s critical minerals deal isn’t good economics – but in Trump and Xi’s new world, bargaining chips matter

From theguardian.com

Anthony Albanese has struck a multi-billion dollar deal with Donald Trump to develop critical minerals projects in Australia that will never be commercially viable. When it’s laid out like that, it very much sounds like our prime minister fell victim to the president’s “art of the deal”. But we are in a new world where the national value of our critical minerals extends beyond economics, experts say. “This is a really significant deal, and I’m surprised how good it is,” says Hayley Channer, the director of the economic security program at the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney. ... (full story)