China has extended the suspension of its expanded rare earth export controls by two months, keeping the measures on hold until January 10, 2027, while trade negotiations with the United States continue. The announcement came on Monday, just one day before the one-year pause was due to expire.
FAKTA
- What happened: China extended the pause on its expanded rare earth export controls until January 10, 2027.
- Announced: Monday, November 9, 2026, by China’s Ministry of Commerce.
- Background: Export controls were introduced in April 2025, widened in October 2025, and paused for one year after a summit between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump in South Korea.
- Also extended: The suspension of China’s 24 percent retaliatory tariff on American goods, for two months from November 10.
- What comes next: Trump is expected to travel to Shenzhen later this month for the APEC leaders’ summit, where he is expected to meet Xi.
Two more months of relief
The one-year pause was set to lapse on November 10. The two-month extension preserves part of the wider trade arrangement reached after the summit between Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump. China’s Ministry of Commerce confirmed the extension in a brief statement on Monday and gave no further details.
The move is part of a broader suspension of trade countermeasures and tariffs announced by Beijing on the same day, as the two countries negotiate toward a longer-term trade agreement. The short extension keeps the arrangement alive through the APEC summit and into the new year, while negotiators work on a lasting deal.
What the controls cover
China first imposed export controls on selected rare earth elements in April 2025. It expanded the restrictions in October of that year, significantly increasing the range of controlled materials and technologies, including certain industrial diamonds and lithium battery technology. The original licensing rules from April 2025 stayed in force throughout the pause; only the expanded October measures were suspended.
Rare earth elements are essential for electronics, electric vehicles, batteries and advanced technologies. China holds a dominant position in the global rare earth supply chain, so its export policies are closely watched by manufacturers and trading partners around the world.
Talks continue ahead of the APEC summit
The extension follows a summit between Xi and Trump in Washington in September, at which the two sides agreed to extend their trade truce until January 10, 2027, and to draw up a list of tariff reductions covering 60 billion dollars of each other’s goods.
Trump is set to travel to Shenzhen in southern China later this month for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders’ summit, where he is expected to meet Xi again. The discussions could shape the future of trade relations between the world’s two largest economies, and observers will be watching whether the two leaders announce a longer-term deal on the sidelines of the summit.
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