- China extends suspension of some rare earth export controls to Jan. 10.
- Move preserves a trade truce with the United States agreed in 2025.
- Licensing requirements for key heavy rare earth exports remain in place.
- Rare earth supply security continues to drive global investment activity.
CHINA has extended by two months its suspension of export controls on some critical minerals, including rare earths, to January 10, preserving its trade truce with the United States, its commerce ministry said.
The ministry announced the extension on Monday. The pause had been due to expire on November 10.
China announced controls on seven heavy rare earth elements in April 2025 and expanded them in October of that year. The two countries agreed a one-year truce in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025 that paused tariff measures and deferred the rare earth curbs.
Washington said in September, when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the White House, that the truce would run to January 10. Beijing had not published matching legal text until now.
China will also keep suspending a range of other measures against the United States, including restrictions on designated US companies. It will keep a 10% additional duty on US goods while continuing to suspend a further 24%, according to trade analysts.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in a separate statement that it remained important for China to fully implement its commitments, particularly on agricultural purchases, rare earths and other critical minerals.
Presidents Donald Trump and Xi are expected to meet in Asia later this month.
Not all controls are paused. China’s April 2025 licensing regime for seven heavy rare earths, including dysprosium and terbium, still requires a licence for every export, according to trade law analysts.
Japan, which Chinese customs data show has been all but cut off from dysprosium and terbium, is investing in Namibia’s Lofdal heavy rare earths project, which contains both elements.
