U.S. and Japan Hold Talks on China's Yttrium Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
nashnova research
The U.S. Department of Energy and Japan's METI convened officials on Sept. 10 to address supply-chain bottlenecks from China's yttrium export controls — two weeks before the Trump-Xi summit, signaling yttrium scarcity has become a strategic priority for both governments.
What is yttrium, and why does it matter?
Yttrium is a silvery rare-earth metal used in jet-engine turbine blade coatings, power-generation equipment, and semiconductor manufacturing tools. No easy substitutes exist.
China imposed export-license requirements on yttrium and other critical minerals last year, retaliating against Trump's April 2025 tariffs.
This means → once a license is denied, downstream factories get nothing. Chinese customs data show zero yttrium shipments to the U.S. in January, May, and June this year.
What real damage has the U.S. already suffered?
The zero-shipment months have caused shutdowns across several critical industries. Reuters reported in May that the White House directly pressured Beijing to secure an export license for a major U.S. company losing hundreds of millions of dollars per month.
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said in May: "Sometimes we have to go and make the case" — referring specifically to stalled rare-earth shipments.
In plain terms = Washington is now lobbying Beijing company-by-company, mineral-by-mineral. This is not routine trade friction — it is emergency triage after a supply chain has snapped.
Why is Japan in an even tighter spot?
After Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae made military remarks regarding Taiwan last November, China's controlled-metal exports to Japan dropped sharply, triggering diplomatic friction.
Reuters found that among nearly 200 filings Japanese companies made to the Tokyo Stock Exchange in May and June, more than two-thirds cited rare-earth controls as an actual or potential negative impact on their business.
This means → Japan's manufacturing sector depends on Chinese rare earths more deeply than America's. Political friction layered on export controls has widened the damage.
Why hold this meeting two weeks before the summit?
Emily Benson, strategy director at Minerva Technology Futures, noted: "The timing itself tells you there have been problems with yttrium flows this year."
She added that the Trump administration is paying particular attention to rare earths that China has cut off and that have military applications.
Manaz Khan, VP for critical supply-chain policy at Silverado Policy Accelerator, put it bluntly: "Yttrium is tiny in volume… but it's on everyone's radar because it really can shut down a car or a jet engine."
This reflects a core dynamic: yttrium's strategic weight far exceeds its trade volume — small quantity, no substitutes, dual military-civilian use. That makes it the easiest target for precision supply cuts.
Can the summit fix this?
After the Busan summit last October, Xi Jinping pledged to resume rare-earth supplies if Trump rolled back some tariffs and export controls — but follow-through has been inconsistent.
China's embassy in Washington responded that its rare-earth export controls are "lawful, compliant, and in line with international practice," adding that China is "committed to maintaining global critical-mineral supply-chain stability."
In plain terms = Beijing's position is "the controls are legal and staying." Washington wants "shipments restored." The two demands have no overlap right now. Whether yttrium flows stabilize after the summit will be one of the clearest tests of whether these talks produce real results.
Is agriculture also competing for summit airtime?
The U.S. Soybean Export Council and the National Sorghum Producers Association wrote to Trump last week demanding Beijing repeal its 10% soybean tariff and urging the administration not to reimpose port fees on Chinese-built or Chinese-operated vessels.
Analysts expect both sides are more likely to reaffirm existing purchase targets than sign a new deal.
This means → rare earths are not the only item on the summit agenda — agriculture is jockeying for negotiating leverage too. But both issues face the same impasse: China's concessions are conditioned on the U.S. pulling back some of its own pressure first.
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