Tue Oct 14 10:00:00 UTC 2025: **Headline: Trade Tensions Reignite as China Restricts Rare Earth Exports, Trump Threatens Retaliation**
**Washington D.C.** – A new trade war front has opened between the United States and China as Beijing imposes sweeping export controls on rare earth minerals. President Donald Trump expressed surprise and accused China of becoming “very hostile,” vowing to reinstate tariffs at triple-digit levels in response.
The move by China, a near-monopoly holder of rare earth minerals essential for electronics, automobiles, and semiconductors, comes amid escalating friction over US restrictions on Chinese firms. Beijing argues that Washington’s actions prompted the tightening of control over these critical minerals.
The renewed tensions have rattled markets, sparked fears of production shocks across global industries, and revived memories of last spring’s tit-for-tat tariff offensives. Doubts are also emerging about the future of trade negotiations and a planned meeting between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remains optimistic about the meeting, while China’s commerce ministry has stated that dialogue is still possible, but not under the threat of further US measures.
Chinese experts and analysts claim that the current escalation could have been avoided had the Trump administration not expanded export restrictions on Chinese entities in late September. Jin Canrong, a professor at Renmin University, described Beijing’s actions as a response to Washington’s “petty maneuvers.”
The US actions that angered Beijing also included plans to charge fees on Chinese-built ships docking at American ports. China’s commerce ministry has called on the US to “preserve the hard-won progress” and warned of countermeasures if Trump follows through on his latest threat.
Experts warn that the situation echoes the downward spiral of relations seen earlier this year. China’s move on rare earths is seen as a proportional response to recent US actions, which included banning Chinese tech giant Huawei’s AI chips and implementing new export curbs on chip designing software.
While China’s commerce ministry claims the new rules are not outright export bans, the restrictions have already caused concern among global industries facing shortages of critical minerals.
Some experts point out that China’s measures mirror restrictions the US has imposed on semiconductors.
The question remains whether the planned meeting between Trump and Xi will still take place. Wang Yiwei, an international relations scholar at Renmin University, said China is prepared to deal with Trump’s tactics.
Amid the escalating trade war, Trump has softened his tone slightly, stating the US would like to “help China, not hurt it” in a recent social media post.
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