Beijing's new restrictions on rare-earth materials ignited a political and economic firestorm. But the latest trade rift generated a surprising upshot: an American company jumping into the rare earths mining business. Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF), the Ohio-based steel company, is already exploring the excavation of rare-earth material and has identified two promising sites, the company announced on Monday. Investors scrambled to get in on the resource play, sending shares up by more than 20%. The sudden excitement over mining is something that we've heard before — only this time it's literally mining. Simply gesturing ... (full story)