China, tungsten and a supply shock in metal critical for war that will last far beyond Iran conflict

A worker pans through ore at a tungsten mine, operated by Trinity Metals Group, in northwest of Kigali, Rwanda, on Friday, May 23, 2025. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images The Iran war has caused well-documented price spikes and shortages on a range of items Americans depend upon. Oil and gas, of course, but also petrochemicals and everything derived from them (e.g. plastics) and helium are among raw materials that have been besieged by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz . …