Donald Trump fired off a furious tirade on Truth Social from the Oval Office this morning, accusing China of plotting to strangle the entire global economy by weaponizing its control of rare earths.
The US president said Beijing is “becoming very hostile” and warned that its sweeping new rules were designed to “clog the Markets” and make life difficult for every nation. In the Truth post, Trump called China’s move a shocking betrayal after six months of what he described as a smooth trade relationship.
He revealed that letters had been sent to multiple governments across the world detailing planned export controls on rare earth elements, and he said those messages listed “each and every Element” Beijing aimed to block.
“Things that were routine are no longer routine at all,” Trump wrote.
“I have not spoken to President Xi because there was no reason to do so. This was a real surprise, not only to me, but to all the Leaders of the Free World. I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so. The Chinese letters were especially inappropriate in that this was the Day that, after three thousand years of bedlam and fighting, there is PEACE IN THE MIDDLE EAST. I wonder if that timing was coincidental?”
Trump cancels Xi meeting and prepares U.S. counter
In the Truth post, Trump added China’s real plan was to build a monopoly over rare earths. He said:
“I have always felt that they’ve been lying in wait, and now, as usual, I have been proven right! There is no way that China should be allowed to hold the World ‘captive,’ but that seems to have been their plan for quite some time, starting with the ‘Magnets’ and other Elements that they have quietly amassed into somewhat of a Monopoly position, a rather sinister and hostile move, to say the least.”
Trump added that the United States holds stronger monopolies of its own but had not used them “UNTIL NOW.”
Trump declared that he was preparing to hit back hard. “Dependent on what China says about the hostile ‘order’ that they have just put out, I will be forced, as President of the United States of America, to financially counter their move. For every Element that they have been able to monopolize, we have two.”
Trump said his team was calculating “a massive increase in Tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States of America.” He added that “many other countermeasures” were under serious study.
Markets crash after Trump statement
The reaction from investors was brutal. Within 30 minutes of Trump’s statement, the S&P 500 plunged more than 100 points. Crypto markets also took a beating, with $200,000,000 liquidated in just 15 minutes. Oil slid to $59.32, hitting its lowest level since May 8.
This dramatic response is coming right after China’s Ministry of Commerce rolled out new restrictions on rare earth exports. The rules, announced Thursday, tighten access to raw materials critical for making semiconductors and defense systems. They followed earlier restrictions introduced in April, which had briefly been eased in June after negotiations.
China controls the bulk of global mining and processing of rare earths, which are needed for laptops, fighter jets, and medical equipment. In response to Trump’s tariff blitz that began this winter, Beijing had tightened controls in April but agreed to speed up shipments in June.
After the April restrictions set off alarms across the private sector and U.S. government, Washington has raced to build up U.S. rare earth processing capability in places like Oklahoma.
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