TMTPOST -- China on Friday confirmed it took further steps to finalize and implement the trade framework it reached through negotiations with the U.S. in London earlier this month.
Credit：Xinhua News Agency
Economic and trade teams from China and the United States have recently further confirmed the details on the framework for implementing the important consensus reached by leaders of two states during their phone calls on June 5, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said Friday, according to a statement released by the ministry.
China will review and approve applications for the export of eligible controlled items in accordance with the law, and the United States will remove a series of restrictive measures imposed on China accordingly, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson didn’t elaborate on the aforementioned details on the framework, neither provided more information such as how China will handle application for exports of rare earth magnets, which are widely used in the auto industry and also required by manufacturers of semiconductors, medical imaging chemicals, robots, offshore wind turbines and a broad range of military hardware.
The spokesperson responded to a media query about recent U.S. officials’ remarks and reports that China and the U.S have agreed on implementing the framework secured during talks in Geneva, and then China will expedite rare-earth exports, in exchange, U.S. will lift certain measures against it.
China hopes that the United States will leverage the role of the China-U.S. economic and trade consultation mechanism further, enhance mutual understanding continuously, reduce misunderstandings, and strengthen cooperation to promote the healthy, stable and sustainable development of China-U.S. economic and trade relations, the spokesperson said.
The statement from the ministry came a day after the Trump administration touted a deal with Beijing that allows U.S. importers’ easier access to the key rare-earth metals from China.
U.S. President Donald Trump said he signed a trade deal with China on Wednesday. “We just signed with China yesterday, ” Trump said at the “Bill Beautiful Bill” event at White House on Thursday. While not offering details about the deal, the president said “ we’re starting to open up China.”
Multiple media reports then said the U.S.-China deal followed the framework that two countries had agreed upon through their trade talks from June 9 to 10 in London. USA Today reported the deal refers to an additional understanding around the framework, and it specifically includes an agreement on how China “can expedite rare earths shipments to the U.S. again.”
The Trump and and China agreed to an additional understanding for a framework to implement the Geneva agreement, and the understanding is about “how we can implement expediting rare earths shipments to the U.S. again,” a White House official echoed, according to Reuters.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Thursday told Bloomberg the U.S.-China deal has been signed two day ago. "They’re going to deliver rare earths to us" and once they do that "we'll take down our countermeasures," said Lutnick.
Trump in a social media post on June 11 announced that a trade deal with China "is done, subject to final approval", and under the deal, China will supply rare-earth minerals and magnets “up front,” in return, U.S. will “provide to China what was agreed to, including Chinese students using our colleges and universities.” Trump didn’t provide details of terms and just described the relationship between two countries as “excellent.”
But the Wall Street Journal reported on June 11 that China just granted temporary export licenses as Beijing is putting a six-month limit on rare-earth export licenses for U.S. automakers and manufacturers. The Chinese government wants to retain its chokehold on the critical minerals to give it valuable ammunition for future negotiations, according to the sources.
Another report from the Wall Street Journal on Thursday said Western companies are still struggling to secure approvals for rare-earth imports from Chinese authorities even though China two week ago promised the U.S. it would ease the export restrictions following the deal. Western firms are waiting weeks as Beijing scrutinize their applications for magnets--only to be rejected in some cases, and applications for raw rare earths using to make magnets are rarely granted, per the report.
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