China defends rare earth export curbs as ‘legitimate,’ hits back at U.S. tariffs as Trump-Xi meeting hangs in balance

China on Sunday defended its new export controls on rare earths as a “legitimate” measure under international law, pushing back against U.S. accusations of economic coercion after Washington announced sweeping retaliatory tariffs and export restrictions.

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce said the controls, issued Oct. 9, were part of Beijing’s effort to strengthen its export control system and “better safeguard world peace and regional stability” amid what it described as a turbulent global security environment.

The measures, which now cover not only rare earth materials but also related intellectual property and technologies, were announced just weeks before a potential meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

“These controls do not constitute export bans. Applications that meet the requirements will be approved,” a commerce ministry spokesperson said. “China has fully assessed the potential impact of these measures on the supply chain and is confident that the impact will be very limited.”

Beijing’s new curbs also require foreign entities to obtain a license to export products containing more than 0.1% of domestically-sourced rare earths, or manufactured using China’s extraction, refining, magnet-making or recycling technology. Applications for items that could be used in weapons or other military purposes will be denied.

Shortly after Beijing tightened export controls on rare earths, the European Chamber of Commerce in China reported a backlog of export license applications awaiting approval, saying the new restrictions “add further complexity to the global supply chains of rare earth elements.”

In response to Beijing’s move, Trump on Oct. 10 announced new tariffs of 100% on imports from China “over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying” beginning Nov. 1. Trump also said that the U.S., on that same date, would also impose export controls on “any and all critical software.”

Stock markets plunged after Trump said on Truth Social that “there is no way that China should be allowed to hold the World ‘captive’” with its rare earths policy — wiping $2 trillion in market value.

The Chinese Commerce Ministry on Sunday local time accused the U.S. of “double standards,” noting that the U.S. control list covers more than 3,000 items, compared to fewer than 1,000 on China’s list.

China accounts for about 70% of the global supply and has repeatedly used the critically needed minerals as a bargaining chip in trade discussions.