China's 'silent war'

EIJING INSTITUTED EXPORT curbs on seven rare earth elements and magnets that have applications in defence, energy, and car manufacturing sectors in April as a result of US President Donald Trump's tariff war on Chinese products.

- Harsh V Pant Kalpit Mankikar

Seven of 17 rare earth elements—samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium—come under the ambit of the new restrictions. The new regulations necessitate that companies procure special licences to export the minerals and magnets.

As the Chinese state builds a Great Wall of red tape, private firms have been buried under paperwork to obtain compliances. The shortages caused due to the latest controls underscore how dependent the West is on China for critical components in manufacturing electric automobiles, wind-turbine generators, and military aircraft. The numbers lay down the stark truth. Chinese customs statistics reveal that overall consignments of rare earth magnets decreased 52.85% in May—the sharpest month-on-month decline since January 2012.