Technology

China Rare Earth Timeline 2010-2026: Magnets & Export Curbs

China's rare-earth leverage is not really about mining - it mines roughly 69% of the world's ore (USGS, 2025), but separates an estimated 90%+ of the world's r…

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REPORTED SHIPMENT DISRUPTION

Some Chinese Suppliers Pause Some US Shipments

Reuters reported on 4 September 2026 that a handful of Chinese rare-earth suppliers had refused to ship some materials - including yttrium and terbium - to some US clien…

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EXPANDED, THEN SUSPENDED

China Expands, Then Suspends, Its Broadest 2025 Rare-Earth Control

On 9 October 2025, MOFCOM Notice No. 61 expanded licensing to five more heavy rare earths and added an extraterritorial rule covering foreign-made goods with Chinese-ori…

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TECHNOLOGY EXPORT BAN

China Bans Export of Rare-Earth Processing Technology

On 21 December 2023, China's Ministry of Commerce banned the export of technology used for rare-earth extraction, separation, smelting and some magnet-preparation proces…

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QUOTAS REMOVED

China Confirms Compliance, Removes Rare-Earth Export Quotas

At a WTO Dispute Settlement Body meeting on 20 May 2015, China confirmed it had removed the export duties, quotas and trading-rights restrictions ruled unlawful in 2014.…

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WTO RULES AGAINST CHINA

WTO Panel and Appellate Body Rule China's Export Quotas Illegal

A WTO panel ruled on 26 March 2014 that China's rare-earth, tungsten and molybdenum export quotas and duties violated GATT Article XI, rejecting China's resource-conserv…

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WTO CASE FILED

US, EU and Japan File a WTO Case Against China's Export Quotas

The United States, European Union and Japan jointly filed WTO cases DS431, DS432 and DS433, challenging China's rare-earth, tungsten and molybdenum export quota-and-duty…

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JAPAN DIVERSIFIES

Japan Launches Its Rare-Earth Diversification Programme

Weeks after Chinese customs unofficially slowed rare-earth shipments to Japan following the Senkaku/Diaoyu boat collision, Japan approved a roughly ¥100 billion suppleme…

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