Evolution of global tungsten product trade pattern and the analysis of China’s trade status from the perspective of industrial chain

Tungsten is an irreplaceable basic material and strategic resource for the national economy and modern national defense security. The endowment of tungsten resources varies greatly, and the tungsten industrial chain is long. It is not only to grasp the advantages of tungsten resources, but also to systematically understand the trade pattern and evolution characteristics of the whole tungsten industrial chain from the perspective of the industrial chain, so as to provide guarantee for the resource security and industrial chain security of the country. Based on the complex network method, this paper selects the global tungsten product trade data from 2013 to 2022, and constructs the global tungsten trade directional weighted network. From the perspective of the industrial chain, the global tungsten industrial chain （upstream, midstream, downstream, and the whole industrial chain） product trade pattern networks are constructed. The evolution trend of tungsten trade supply and demand is analyzed, the core and hub trading countries （regions） are identified, and the status of China in the tungsten trade pattern is explored. The research shows that: ① The scale of the global tungsten industrial chain trade network increases, the degree of interdependence between countries deepens, and the characteristics of a “small world” are more obvious. The main trading countries in the community are developed or developing countries with advantages in resource endowment and rapid development of the manufacturing industry. ② In the global tungsten trade, developed countries still occupy a dominant position, especially downstream. China and the United States, Germany and the Netherlands, and the United States and Germany respectively play an important role in resource regulation in the upstream, midstream, downstream reaches of tungsten trade, and have strong control over tungsten resources and trade relations. ③ China is a net exporter of tungsten products, and its position in the tungsten industrial chain is constantly improving. China’s trading partners in the global tungsten trading network are diversified, and developed countries are the main trading partners. This study provides some reference support for the development of tungsten trade policy and tungsten resource security among countries.