China tightens curbs on rare metal exports amid tensions with US
China has announced a decision to tighten reporting controls on rare metal exports, a move that could choke off the United States’ supply of critical minerals used in the production of electric cars and missiles.
The Chinese Commerce Ministry said on Tuesday that exporters of rare earth elements would need to report their shipment orders.
The country’s decision is being viewed as a message to Washington about Beijing’s potential to target specific industries as a response to the US’s own restrictions on high-end semiconductors.
China is the biggest producer of rare elements.
He Yadong, a ministry spokesperson, said that the establishment of an import and export statistical survey and reporting mechanism for certain bulk products is an “internationally accepted practice.”
“Statistics on the import and export of goods helps us to grasp the incomings and outgoings of bulk products in a timely manner in order to examine trends,” he said.
The new reporting requirement is an update to the commodity reporting regulations published in 2022 by China’s statistics bureau and will last two years starting from October 31.
China currently accounts for 60 percent of the world’s rare earth extraction and 87 percent of processing, according to an analysis by the Paris-based International Energy Agency.
Rare earth elements are a group of 17 minerals that, although abundant, are challenging to extract and process for use in cutting-edge technologies, from new electric vehicles and solar panels to microchips used by the defense industry.
In July, Beijing imposed export restrictions on two rare earth minerals—gallium and germanium—which are crucial for semiconductor manufacturing.
The act was viewed as a counter-blow to Washington’s controls on China’s access to high-end computer chips.
Meanwhile, the US has worked with its allies to reduce dependence on China for rare earth metals. Renewed efforts are being made to shore up domestic production at sites such as Fort Worth in Texas.
In April, the United States moved to block China’s access to the most advanced semiconductors and the equipment and talent needed to make them.
China slammed Washington’s act as “technological terrorism” and unfairly hindering its economic growth.
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