China lifts ban on exports of rare earth to 28 US entities
Following the Geneva negotiations, China has successively released measures to reduce its confrontation with the United States. On the evening of Wednesday, it announced the lifting of the export ban targeting 28 US entities, involving the export of rare earth and other military-related items and technologies. In addition, the Ministry of Commerce also announced that it will simultaneously suspend trade and investment bans on 17 American enterprises for a period of 90 days.
The Ministry of Commerce announced late Wednesday evening in response to reporters' questions that the 28 US entities listed on the export control list last month on the 4th and 9th would be granted a 90-day suspension of the ban from today, allowing exporters to apply for exports of dual-use products to these enterprises.
Previously, on April 4, the Ministry of Commerce banned exports of seven types of rare earth to 16 US companies, including samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium; then on April 9, it added another 12 companies. These rare earths are widely used in high-tech fields such as national defense, energy, and electric vehicles.
According to a report by Reuters on the 13th, China has already issued export licenses to at least four rare earth manufacturers, which is the first issuance of licenses since the new export restrictions were implemented in April, but there were no US companies on this batch of lists.
As the world's largest supplier of rare earths, China has repeatedly used rare earth exports as bargaining chips in trade conflicts in the past. The suspension of export restrictions this time was interpreted by the market as Beijing sending goodwill, which helps alleviate pressure on the supply chains of the US high-tech industry and military industry.
However, this suspension measure is only valid for 90 days, whether it can be extended or ultimately canceled remains to be observed in the progress of future trade negotiations. High-level meetings between China and the United States will continue in the near future to discuss the possibility of further trade agreements and long-term economic cooperation.
In order to consolidate rare earth resources, the United States and Ukraine signed a mineral agreement, giving the United States priority in investing in natural resources. In fact, Trump also called for "restoring America's dominant position in minerals" in an executive order signed on his first day in office, which included expanding mining land within the United States.
In addition to permitting rare earth exports to the United States, the Ministry of Commerce declared in another statement on the same day that it would immediately suspend sanctions on 17 US enterprises, allowing Chinese enterprises to apply for transactions with these enterprises, and the working mechanism will review according to law.
These 17 enterprises were originally prohibited from engaging in import and export activities related to China and adding new investments within China. Among them, the sanctions on 11 US companies listed in the "Unreliable Entity List" on April 4 will be suspended for 90 days.
However, regarding the six US companies involved in arms sales to Taiwan announced on April 9, no suspension period was mentioned.
Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1832179826143243/
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