China introduced a ban on the exports of rare minerals to the US due to ongoing tensions over trade. The renewed tensions between the world’s two largest economies come after the US introduced restrictions on exports of China’s semiconductor chips and related equipment.
Some of the rare minerals that will be affected by the Chinese Commerce Ministry’s export ban are gallium, germanium, antimony and other rare minerals that could be used for military purposes.
The ban, which will take effect immediately, was justified by China through national security concerns. The current policy expanded previous restrictions introduced earlier this year. Besides banning rare minerals, the Chinese commerce department has also issued a ban on more than 100 China-based chipmaking tool manufacturers and blocked the sales of certain software tools.
The ban on rare mineral exports to the US will control advanced technologies that can be threats to China
In a public statement, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said that the rare mineral export ban aims to restore control of advanced technology production that is a risk to Chinese national security.
This was echoed by a spokesman of the Chinese foreign ministry, Lin Jian, who said in a press conference that China has protested the newly imposed restrictions by the US Jian proclaimed that the United States is “maliciously suppressing China’s technology progress.”
Chart of the Day – China bans exports of key rare minerals to U.S. as trade frictions escalate.
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During the press conference, Jian said, “Let me reiterate that China firmly opposes the US’s overstretching the concept of national security, abusing export controls, and wantonly imposing illegal unilateral sanctions and ‘long-arm jurisdiction’ over Chinese companies.”
China amounts to 60% of the world’s mineral production
China has a solid grip on the world’s rare mineral supply, as it not only makes up 60% of the planet’s rare earth mineral production, but it also possesses 85% of its mineral processing. The overwhelming power that China has over global rare mineral production has worried US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, as she pointed out earlier this year.
This is not the first time the Chinese Commerce Ministry set export bans on the US this year. In August, the agency set restrictions on antimony, which is a product used for goods such as batteries and weapons. The same is true of graphite exports.
Numerous analysts have also argued that the latest export ban imposed on rare minerals by China is a response to President-elect Trump’s threat to increase tariffs. He is also expected to have a harsher approach toward Chinese chip production than the Biden administration.
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