Bessent blasts China as ‘unreliable’ as trade tensions mount

Senior US officials have accused China of betraying a trade truce reached earlier this year, escalating tensions between the two economic giants.

In an unusual, staged appearance, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent blasted China’s plans to curb rare earth exports as “economic coercion” and a “power grab over the global supply chain.”

“If China wants to become an unreliable partner for the world, then the world will have to decouple,” Bessent said.

At the same time, they left the door open for negotiations, questioning whether China would ultimately implement the export controls announced last week.

“The scope and scale is simply unimaginable and it cannot be implemented,” Greer said Wednesday of China’s tightening of export controls.

China processes about 90% of the world’s rare earths and magnets – materials essential to making cutting-edge technology and used in everything from cars to smartphones.

Its dominance of the sector is a key point of vulnerability in trade negotiations for the United States, where many companies rely on these materials.

Beijing’s latest rules mean foreign companies will need Chinese government approval to export products containing even small amounts of rare earths and will have to explain their intended use.

Beijing also announced similar restrictions on the export of lithium batteries and some forms of graphite, critical to the global technology supply chain.

Last week, Trump responded to the rules by threatening to impose additional 100% tariffs on imports from China starting next month. He said in a social media post that the United States would also impose export controls on critical software.

These measures are currently being developed, Greer said.

The United States and China also began imposing new port fees on each other’s ships on Tuesday, in another sign of strain in their relations.

The surge in trade tensions, ahead of an expected meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, has raised fears of a breakdown of the fragile truce between the trading partners in place since the spring – and a return to an all-out trade war.

The countries agreed in May to cut tariffs by up to 145%, which had nearly halted trade. Since then, Chinese products entering the United States have faced an additional 30% levy compared to the start of the year, while American products destined for China are subject to a new 10% tariff.

Greer, referring to the May deal between the United States and China, said that “since then we have lowered tariffs – but now the Chinese have expanded their export controls.”

Bessent said some U.S. automakers have already called the White House with concerns about a slowdown in supply.

He said Beijing’s move showed the need for the United States and some of its allies to work together, calling it “unacceptable” and “highly provocative.”

“It’s China against the world,” he said. “We and our allies will not be commanded or controlled. We are not going to let a bunch of bureaucrats in Beijing try to manage the global supply chain.”

He said the United States could take “substantial steps” but added that “we would prefer not to take them.”

“I believe China is open to discussion and I am optimistic that this situation can be defused,” he said.