EU leaders have raised concerns that a shortage of magnesium could force carmakers and other users of aluminium to shut down production within weeks unless China restarts its magnesium smelters.
Germany’s outgoing chancellor Angela Merkel warned her fellow leaders of the potential crisis at their summit in Brussels on Thursday, diplomats told the Financial Times.
Merkel said the rise in global energy prices was having unexpected knock-on effects, with China’s magnesium shortage hurting car manufacturers in Europe, according to diplomats familiar with the discussion. Her concerns were echoed by Andrej Babis, prime minister of the Czech Republic, another big car-producing country.