The world dropped the ball on critical minerals and China pounced. Is it too late for Australia and the US to close the gap?

Iluka Resources’ Eneabba site. Australia is already an established miner of critical minerals, but ‘we’re just getting started’, the prime minister says. Photograph: Iluka Resources/Reuters

Almost eight years to the day after the last Holden rolled off an Adelaide factory assembly line, Anthony Albanese announced a $13bn deal with Donald Trump to help champion a domestic rare-earth industry.

Announcing the deal this week in Washington, the prime minister called it “a really significant day” that would take the relationship between the two countries “to the next level”.