Rare earths friction threatens to stall trade truce extension ahead of Xi-Trump summit

The US and China continue to wrangle over extending the 2025 Busan trade agreement just hours before Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Washington for a state visit, even as they report progress on implementing a narrow tariff-reduced trade mechanism.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Monday blamed China for creating “uncertainty” over the pact’s extension, saying Beijing was still holding out on supplying enough strategic mineral exports to the United States.

“They have limited rare earth exports. They’ve controlled them,” Greer said in an interview with Bloomberg News.

“President Xi and President Trump have a good relationship, but we need these extensions or other things to go incrementally to make sure that there’s compliance.”