Battery Metal Curbs Sting Chinese Miners Who Spent Big in Africa

African export restrictions on crucial battery metals are dealing a blow to Chinese companies that have spent billions of dollars developing mines there to dominate supplies.

For more than a decade, Chinese miners have plowed money into Africa to secure feedstocks for their refineries and factories back home amid expectation of surging demand for minerals used in electric vehicles and energy storage systems. While other parts of the world pushed back against Chinese efforts to gain a foothold, African nations still largely welcome those investments.