China's Rare Earth Exports Take a Dip: What's the Big Deal?

China's shipments of rare earth magnets saw a decline in September. This happened before new, stricter export rules were even put in place. The drop was about 6. 1% compared to the previous month. This news comes from official Chinese customs data. So, why is this a big deal? Rare earth magnets are super important. They are used in all sorts of tech and defense systems. The drop in exports could get worse. China recently added more rare earth elements to its export control list. They also put limits on products made using Chinese refining and magnet-making tech. These new rules started right away. But the extended control over rare earth elements will kick in on December 1. China's Commerce Ministry said that companies tied to foreign militaries or on export-control lists won't get permits. However, they promised to approve licenses for magnets meant for civilian use. Experts say this shows China knows it has a lot of power in international trade talks. This all comes as the U. S. and China are still negotiating trade deals. There's even talk of a meeting between U. S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping later this month. Despite efforts in the West to build their own supply chains, China still controls a huge part of the market. The International Energy Agency (IEA) warned about this earlier this year. China dominates the refining of 19 out of 20 minerals the IEA analyzed. On average, China holds about 70% of the market share in these critical minerals.