China Cuts Off Rare Earth Mineral Exports to U.S. in Trade War with Trump

China’s retaliation against President Donald Trump’s tariffs includes more export controls on rare earth minerals, which are vital to electronics and battery manufacturing.

The Chinese government said over the weekend that it will maintain its supply of rare earths to the rest of the world while limiting U.S. access to the minerals.

China is the world’s dominant producer of rare earth minerals, accounting for about 70 percent of the world’s supply at the moment. More precisely, China supplies roughly 60 percent of the raw minerals, but controls almost 90 percent of processing and refining capacity.

China controlled 90 percent of the market a decade ago, but alternative suppliers have ramped up production. The Chinese retaliated for this infringement upon their near-monopoly by setting record-high production quotas in a bid to bring prices down and bankrupt their competitors.

China sought to use rare earths as a trade weapon again on Sunday, designating seven of the valuable minerals for additional export controls. Chinese mining stocks soared on the promise of bigger earnings from higher prices.

China’s export controls did not explicitly cut off exports of rare earths to the United States, but importers know from experience that the practical effect of Beijing announcing “tighter controls” to protect its “national interests” usually means supplies are quickly and dramatically reduced.

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