In Asia Wednesday Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.5% to 22,969 and China's Shanghai Composite Index added 0.7% to close at 2,752. In Japan the Nikkei 225 Index advanced 0.5% to 10,345. Raw materials were the name of the game today as China announced plans to cut its exports of rare earth minerals by 35% in 2011 in order to maintain stocks for its own expanding industries. Rare earths are made up of a group of 17 elements -- they are not actually as rare as they sound but are necessary in the production of many of the electronic goods we take for granted. These include PC monitors, televisions, iPods, washing machines and fluorescent light bulbs, as well as newer applications like electric motors for hybrid cars. See full article from DailyFinance: http://srph.it/dGWP1L

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