Rare Earth Embargo
China, which has been blocking shipments of crucial minerals to Japan for the last month, has now quietly halted shipments of some of those same materials to the United States and Europe, the New York Times reported, citing three industry officials.
“The embargo is expanding” beyond Japan, one of the three rare earth industry officials said, all of whom insisted on anonymity for fear of business retaliation by Chinese authorities, the newspaper reported.
They said Chinese customs officials imposed the broader shipment restrictions Monday morning, hours after a top Chinese official had summoned international news media Sunday night to denounce U.S. trade actions, the Time said.
