Day: June 8, 2025

China signals readiness on rare earth talks, approves more exports

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China has approved some qualified rare earth export applications and is ready to deepen dialogue with nations over export controls, the Ministry of Commerce said as the strategic resource continued to take centre stage in Beijing’s trade negotiations with the United States. Advertisement “We’ve observed growing global demand for medium and heavy rare earths in civilian sectors such as robotics and new energy vehicles, as these industries continue to expand,” the ministry said in a statement posted on its official website on Saturday. It added that, as “a responsible major…

China’s rare mineral gives blind mice ‘super vision’, offers hope for humans

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Researchers have used a rare mineral produced mostly in China to create an artificial retina that not only restored sight in blind animals, but also gave them “super vision” – the extraordinary ability to see infrared light. Advertisement The advance offers significant promise for treating human blindness, according to scientists. The study, led by Wang Shuiyuan, a researcher at the College of Integrated Circuits and Micro-Nano Electronics at Fudan University in Shanghai, was published in the journal Science on May 5. The study showed how researchers harnessed the mineral tellurium…

China arms itself for more export control battles

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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. China’s success in snarling global supply chains by stemming the flow of rare earths has piled pressure on Washington and made clear Beijing’s power to weaponise export controls on a wider range of critical goods, analysts and businesspeople say. China dominates the supply chain for key minerals and its commerce ministry started requiring licences for exports of rare earths and related magnets in early April. The slow approval process has…

Chinese regulators seek to slow rollout of self-driving features in cars

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The rapid deployment of autonomous driving features on Chinese cars has sparked alarm among regulators in Beijing, who have made the industry tap on the brakes while they assess questions over safety and liability. Despite an unclear legal framework for new assisted-driving technologies, nearly one in five new cars sold in China is now equipped with high-level autonomous functions. Beijing officials, caught on the back foot, are expected to slow the rollout as they develop a regulatory framework for the new suite of technologies, where China is rapidly becoming a…