China Stops Rare Earth Mineral Exports to U.S.

China will no longer export certain rare earth minerals to the United States, the Chinese Commerce Ministry announced on Tuesday.

• “The export of gallium, germanium, antimony and superhard materials to the United States shall not be permitted,” the ministry wrote.

Monopoly: China monopolizes the world’s rare earth mineral supply because it exploits cheap labor and lax environmental regulations to mine far more than any other country. These valuable minerals are vital ingredients in many crucial electronics, including smartphones, weapons and other military technologies.

An industrial, technology-based society cannot function without these critical elements, and a technology-based military like America’s would be crippled without them.

A kind of warfare: China’s decision to ban exporting rare earth minerals to the U.S. comes just a day after the U.S. increased restrictions on China’s ability to import semiconductors and the technology required to make them.

• Semiconductors are the foundation of electronics manufacturing, and China controls much of the world’s supply of the vital materials needed for their construction.

Tensions between the U.S. and China are rising, and this tit-for-tat trade warfare will soon escalate dramatically.

Frozen out: The Trumpet has long warned of America’s alarming technological dependence and how vulnerable it is to being frozen out of world trade.

The Bible prophesies that the U.S. will be besieged economically, leaving its military unable to defend the nation. That is why the Trumpet watches as rising tensions between the U.S. and China have serious economic and technological consequences.

To learn more about this coming siege, read Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry’s article “America Is Being Besieged Economically.”