China’s trade reprisals may extend to minerals like rare earths
China isn’t short of options when it comes to critical minerals that could be used as counters in a trade war with the US.
Beijing’s ban on Tuesday covering sales to the US of gallium, germanium, antimony and superhard materials, and tighter controls on graphite, are likely an opening salvo in export controls that could be extended to dozens of niche materials if trade frictions with Washington escalate.
“This may only be the start of the country ensuring national security and its strategic role in mineral resources,” Citic Securities Co. said in a note.
The state-backed brokerage listed 10 commodities, including the 17 elements grouped as rare earths, in which China holds an outsized role as producer or processor. The minerals are typically crucial to high-tech manufacturing, including so-called dual uses in military applications…
