Economic warfare through informal imperialism: The pre–World War II struggle for Chinese tungsten between Britain and Nazi Germany

This article unravels the struggle between Nazi Germany and Britain over Chinese tungsten ores in the run-up to World War II. Tungsten was highly strategic, akin to today’s rare earth elements. Its use in special alloys could dramatically increase the speed of armaments production, and China was by far the largest and cheapest producer. While Germany sought to secure access to Chinese ores through semi-private firms and barter deals, Britain attempted to impede German procurement efforts by relying on state-affiliated firms as well as state-guaranteed loans. As this article demonstrates, Germany obtained substantial quantities of Chinese tungsten ore, and Britain’s strategic aim of denying access proved largely ineffective. This outcome can partly be attributed to diverging government–business relations: Germany operated a system of proxy firms that advanced state strategic objectives, whereas Britain’s role as a facilitator of trade and finance left it more reliant on voluntary cooperation from firms.