Trump also hailed the US-China relationship while meeting South Korean President Lee Jae-myung in the White Houseโs Oval Office. In a soft warning, he said the US can adopt various moves which could destroy China but they will not do so.
US President Donald Trump has threatened a whopping 200 per cent tariffs on China if Beijing continues to restrict export of rare earth magnets.
“We have a very strong relationship economically with China. They have to give us magnets. If they donโt, we charge a 200% tariff or something … .China intelligently went in and they sort of took a monopoly of the world’s magnets. Nobody needed magnets until they convinced everybody 20 years ago, ‘let’s all do magnets.’ There were many other ways that the world could have gone … we’re heavily into the world of magnets now,” Trump said.
Why magnets matter to the world
China’s export restriction on key rare earth magnets has resulted in a supply chain bottleneck and impacted global industries, including electric vehicle manufacturers and semiconductor chips production units. India has also been impacted due to this move as Beijing represents 90 per cent of the global magnet market.
Rare earth magnets include neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB). It is used for high-performance automotive applications such as traction motors in electric vehicles (two-wheelers and passenger vehicles) and power steering motors (in passenger vehicles) in both electric vehicles and internal combustion engine vehicles.
These rare magnets are also used in the manufacture of electronic items and smartphones.
Trumpโs soft warning to China
Trump also hailed the US-China relationship while meeting South Korean President Lee Jae-myung in the White Houseโs Oval Office. In a soft warning, he said the US can adopt various moves which could destroy China but they will not do so.
โWe are going to have a great relationship with China. They have some cards. We have incredible cards, but I don’t want to play those cards. If I play those cards, that would destroy China. I am not going to play those cards,โ Trump said.
US issues official notice to impose 25% additional tariffs on India
The US Department of Homeland Security on Monday issued a notice outlining the plan to implement 50 per cent tariffs on Indian imports. President Donald Trump, in an executive order, announced 25 per cent tariffs on India but the levies were heightened to 50 per cent, asserting that India was fuelling the Ukraine war by buying oil from Russia.
This move by the White House signals that the US is in no mood to let go of the issue and plans to push ahead with its measures against India.