London, Oct. 22 -- Neha Mukherjee, a rare earth expert and Research Manager at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, has urged nations to urgently diversify their sources to avoid a global supply chain breakdown.

"The problem is that the entire world is now structurally dependent on China," she said, suggesting, "If you want a secure supply chain, diversify your sources as much as possible."

Her suggestion comes as tensions rise over China's tightening grip on rare earth exports to the world.

China's recent decision to impose new export controls on several medium and heavy rare earth elements -- critical materials used in defence, clean energy, and high-tech manufacturing -- has, to a degree, hit global industries.

"We are days, if not week...