SHENZHEN – Even as China and the US roll back tariffs and other trade salvos amid a 90-day truce, there is one powerful source of leverage that Beijing appears to be retaining: the control of its exports of critical minerals, including rare earths.
China’s Commerce Ministry said on May 12, the same day that details of the US-China agreement were announced, that strengthening export controls of strategic mineral resources was crucial to national security.
A ministry spokesman said that smuggling activity had been detected after Beijing implemented export controls, and that China had launched a campaign to crack down on such moves. Also that day, a social media account affiliated with state broadcaster CCTV published a post titled “China’s rare earth export controls continue”.
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