Chinese exports of rare earth magnets plummet in May

BEIJING - Chinese exports of rare-earth magnets continued their downward slide in May, official data showed on June 20, reflecting restrictions imposed by Beijing during its trade war with the United States.

China is the world’s leading producer of rare earths, used to make magnets essential to the automotive, electronics and defence industries.

Since April, Beijing has required traders to obtain licences before they export the strategic materials, a move seen as retaliation for US curbs on the import of Chinese goods.

Many manufacturers, particularly in the automotive sector, have bewailed what they view as sporadic licence issuances.

And Chinese customs data revealed on June 20 that the country’s rare-earth magnet exports plummeted by 70 per cent year-on-year in May, following an initial slowdown observed in April.

Exports fell below the US$60 million (S$77 million) mark, hitting their lowest level since 2015 excluding the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Bloomberg News.

After talks between China and the US in London in June, Beijing said it had issued a “certain number” of export licences for rare earths.

US President Donald Trump said last week on his Truth Social platform that “any necessary rare earths... will be supplied, up front, by China”.

Beijing also said it would launch a “green channel” to facilitate rare earth exports to the European Union.

But its exports of rare-earth magnets to the EU in May plunged by 81 per cent year-on-year, according to the customs figures.

And exports of small parcels to the US dropped by half compared to the previous month.

In May, Washington ended a tariff exemption previously enjoyed by low-value parcels shipped from China and Hong Kong.

The measure dealt a severe blow to platforms shipping low-cost items from China, such as Shein and Temu.

The decline was offset by a rise in