By suzanne downing 
China tightened its grip on the global technology supply chain this week with new export controls on rare earth elements and refining technologies.
The move appears strategic, as it comes just weeks before President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet in South Korea.
Update: President Trump has called off the meeting that was planned between the two.
The Ministry of Commerce in Beijing announced the new measures Thursday, adding five rare earth elements – holmium, erbium, thulium, europium, and ytterbium – to China’s export control list. Restrictions also extend to dozens of refining and processing technologies, with new licensing requirements for any foreign company that uses Chinese-sourced materials or techniques.
The escalation in tariff and trade policies continue between the United States and China, as both sides seek leverage over critical supply chains needed for semiconductors, electric vehicles, defense, and artificial intelligence.
China processes about 90% of the world’s rare earth elements.
Under the new rules, foreign companies will need export licenses if their products contain more than 0.1% by value of Chinese-sourced rare earths or are produced using Chinese mining, refining, or magnet-making technologies.
Exports tied to military applications or advanced computing will face extra scrutiny from China, and some destined for defense-related uses will be rejected outright.
The controls take effect immediately, with full enforcement expected by Dec. 1. They expand on measures first announced in April that caused global shortages before temporary supply agreements were reached with Europe and the United States.
The White House is assessing the fall out of the sudden move, which was apparently announced without advance notice. The policy mirrors the US “Foreign Direct Product Rule,” used to restrict China’s access to high-end chips. It’s now a tit-for-tat escalation between China and the US.
Trump and Xi are expected to meet later this month during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Seoul. On Friday, Trump threatened a “massive increase” in tariffs on Chinese goods, calling the restrictions an attempt to “hold the world hostage.”
Markets responded immediately, as rare earth mining companies surged. USA Rare Earth jumped 15%, NioCorp rose 12%, and MP Materials was up 2%, on hopes of accelerated domestic production.
Suzanne Downing
Alaska has a huge rare-earth deposit in the Ray Mountains, just north of the Yukon River ten miles west of the Dalton Highway. BLM tried to lock it up.