FX.co ★ Trump’s rare earth ultimatum: ease export curbs or face steep tariffs

Donald Trump has played a familiar card from his trade war deck by suggesting that Washington will consider rolling back tariffs on Chinese imports if Beijing loosens its grip on rare earth exports and resumes large-scale purchases of US soybeans.

The US president noted that the production of electric vehicles, fighter jets, and Tomahawk missiles could grind to a halt without samarium, yttrium, and other so-called “superhero metals.” In his view, Beijing must “give us something in return” or face a fresh round of 100% import tariffs starting November 1.

In Washington, China’s control over the global supply of rare earths is considered second only to its influence on market sentiment. Even a minor adjustment to export quotas is enough to send tremors through global commodity markets. Trump made it clear that the US would not stand by until supply chains collapse, proposing a straightforward trade-off: Washington will lower tariffs if Beijing loosens its controls on rare earth exports.

The premise is simple and packaged like a campaign slogan: “Soybeans for tariffs.” If Beijing is willing to enter a transactional exchange, a de-escalation in trade tensions may still be on the table.