Adapted by:
Juan Carlos López
Senior WriterAn engineer by training. A science and tech journalist by passion, vocation, and conviction. I've been writing professionally for over two decades, and I suspect I still have a long way to go. At Xataka, I write about many topics, but I mainly enjoy covering nuclear fusion, quantum physics, quantum computers, microprocessors, and TVs.
Karen Alfaro
WriterCommunications professional with a decade of experience as a copywriter, proofreader, and editor. As a travel and science journalist, I've collaborated with several print and digital outlets around the world. I'm passionate about culture, music, food, history, and innovative technologies.
As expected, the Chinese government hasn’t stood idly by in the face of the tariffs the U.S. is preparing. Barely 24 hours after President Donald Trump announced the taxes he would impose on imports of most products from abroad, Chinese President Xi Jinping responded—and he did so forcefully.
Starting April 10, China will impose a 34% tariff on all imports from the U.S. The choice of that date is no accident. The tariffs approved by Trump’s administration will go into effect on April 9, just one day earlier. Presumably, the Chinese government has given itself a few days to reach an agreement with its U.S. counterpart and ease tensions.
China Has Decided to Push the U.S. Harder Than Ever on Rare Earth Elements
China’s response to the U.S. isn’t only to impose new tariffs. It has also suspended import licenses for products from six U.S. companies and imposed more controls on the export of some rare earth elements. This isn’t the first time China has pressured the U.S. and its allies by restricting exports of these raw materials.
On Dec. 21, 2023, the Chinese government restricted the export of some of its rare earth processing technologies.
In fact, on Dec. 21, 2023, the Chinese government restricted the export of some of its rare earth processing technologies, shaping a maneuver aimed at defending its strategic interests amid a confrontation with the U.S. and its allies. And in early December 2024, it banned the export of critical minerals to the U.S.
These include three chemical elements essential to the semiconductor industry—gallium, germanium and antimony—as well as some extremely hard materials that can be used in military applications.
Before going any further, rare earth materials are a real treasure. This peculiar group of chemical elements includes elusive metals with evocative names such as neodymium, promethium, gadolinium, yttrium and scandium, among others. Some of them are relatively rare and not usually found in pure form in nature, but what makes them special are their physicochemical properties.
Their properties are beyond the reach of other elements in the periodic table, making rare earth elements a valuable resource in many industries in recent decades—especially in the semiconductor, electronics and renewable energy sectors. This is why rare earths are so important to the U.S.
Time will tell how far-reaching the new export controls on rare earth elements approved by China’s Ministry of Commerce will be. The cards are on the table. The U.S. and China still have five days to reach an agreement before their new tariffs go into effect.
Image | Tom Fisk
Log in to leave a comment