"When Trump rashly announced his Liberation Day tariffs in April, he badly miscalculated. He seemed to think that China was vulnerable because it exported far more to the United States than it purchased. He apparently didn't appreciate that much of what China purchased, like soybeans, it could get elsewhere while Beijing is now the OPEC of rare earth minerals, leaving us without alternative sources. China controls about 90% of rare earths and is the sole supplier of six heavy rare earth minerals;"
"Rare earths and rare earth magnets are essential ingredients of modern industry. They are necessary for the manufacturing of drones, automobiles, airplanes, wind turbines, many electronics and much military equipment; without them, some American factories would close and military suppliers would be severely affected. A single submarine can require 4 tons of rare earths. It was quite predictable that China would respond to an international dispute by weaponizing its control over rare earths, for that is what it did with Japan in 2010."
"Sure enough, two days after Trump announced his Liberation Day tariffs, China announced export controls for some rare earths. It then greatly expanded the export controls this month. Over a barrel It soon became obvious that President Xi Jinping of China had us over a barrel, for the U.S. economy depends on Chinese rare earths far more than China depends on American soybeans."
The U.S.-China bilateral relationship has been weakened by a trade war initiated by President Trump. Trump announced tariffs in April that miscalculated Chinese resilience and trade dependencies. Much of China's imports, such as soybeans, can be sourced elsewhere, while China controls about 90% of rare earths and is the sole supplier of six heavy rare earth minerals. Rare earths and rare earth magnets are essential for drones, automobiles, airplanes, wind turbines, electronics and military equipment. China implemented export controls on some rare earths shortly after the tariffs and later expanded those controls, reducing U.S. leverage and harming American industry and defense supply chains.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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