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China’s decision to open 14 futures and options products—including nickel and lithium carbonate—to foreign investors marks one of its most significant steps toward strengthening its role in global commodity markets. While officially presented as financial market liberalization, the move carries deeper geo-economic and strategic ambitions. For decades, China has been the world’s largest consumer of raw materials, yet it has remained on the sidelines when it comes to setting global prices. Despite driving demand for metals, energy, and agricultural products, the benchmarks that determine costs are largely controlled by Western financial hubs such as the London Metal Exchange (LME), New York Mercantile Exchange, and Singapore’s commodity markets. This imbalance has left Beijing exposed to price volatility and dependent on external mechanisms, a situation that has long frustrated policymakers in the Chinese capital.

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