China has announced a ban on exporting several critical minerals with potential military applications to the United States, escalating trade tensions following Washington’s latest crackdown on China’s chip industry.
The ban, effective immediately, covers gallium, germanium, and antimony. Additionally, stricter end-use reviews will now apply to graphite items, a key component in electric vehicle batteries, being shipped to the US.
“In principle, the export of gallium, germanium, antimony, and superhard materials to the United States shall not be permitted,” stated China’s commerce ministry.
The new restrictions reinforce existing curbs on these critical minerals that Beijing introduced last year but now specifically target the US market. This move comes amid heightened trade friction between the world’s two largest economies.
The US is evaluating the impact of these measures and will take “necessary steps” in response, a White House spokesperson said, without elaborating.
“These new controls only highlight the urgency of strengthening collaboration with other nations to de-risk and diversify critical supply chains away from the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” the spokesperson added.
