The Minister of Finance of USAScott Bessent, estimated that the China made a “mistake” by imposing restrictions on rare earth exports, judging that Beijing thereby drew attention to one of its trade weapons.
“China warned the whole world about the danger. They really made a mistake,” the US official said in an interview with the Financial Times published today.
“It’s one thing to put the gun on the table and it’s another to shoot in the air,” he continued.
Beijing announced in early October controls on exports of technology related to rare earths, minerals essential to the automotive industry, electronics and even the defense industry.
After talks between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Donald Trump in South Korea on Thursday, Beijing agreed to suspend some of the restrictions for at least a year.
The issue of rare earths is a key point of friction between the world’s two largest economies and a major source of turmoil for global supply chains.
China has a near monopoly on rare earth processing and has been criticized for using its position to pressure its trading partners.
But, according to Besent, Beijing has lost its edge. “We have measures in place to compensate for the situation”, emphasized the American minister. “I think the Chinese leadership was a little worried by the reaction of the people to the restrictions,” he announced.