China hits back at U.S. with export ban on rare minerals
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Wang Wentao, China's minister of commerce, in Shanghai, China, on Nov. 5. Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg via Getty Images
China announced Tuesday that it was banning the export of certain rare minerals to the U.S. that have military and technological applications.
Why it matters: The move is seemingly a tit-for-tat response to the Biden administration's announcement Monday of a slate of export controls on chip manufacturing equipment and software as well as other curbs on the Chinese chip industry.
Driving the news: The Chinese Commerce Ministry announced Tuesday that it would ban the export of rare minerals including gallium, germanium, and antimony, AP reported.
- These materials — which China dominates the global production of — are key to the production of semiconductor chips and other advanced technologies.
- The U.S. Commerce Department and State Department did not immediately respond to Axios' requests for comment regarding China's new export ban.
Zoom in: China is the world's biggest producer of gallium and germanium, which are used to make computer chips, cars, solar panels and other products, per AP.
- It's also a major producer of antimony, which is used in the production of flame retardants, lead-acid batteries, night vision goggles and even nuclear weapons.
- China will also subject the export of graphite — used in electric vehicle batteries — to stricter review, the New York Times reported.
- Tuesday's ban comes on top of previous export restrictions and limits China had imposed on the materials, Reuters reported.
The big picture: This week's dueling measures are a part of a broader race between the two global powers to develop and dominate advanced technologies.
- President Biden has made investing in the American semiconductor industry and advanced battery production a key facet of his agenda.
- The Biden administration has framed shoring up U.S. supply chains of critical minerals as a matter of national security.
- China, which has also framed its new measures as a matter of national security, rebuked the U.S. for its export controls.
- Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters Tuesday that "China firmly opposes the US's overstretching the concept of national security" and that it would take "resolute measures" to defend the interests of Chinese companies.
Go deeper: Commerce Department hits China with sweeping export controls
