Trump Signals Renewing Trade War with China as Thaw Thins Out

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In a fiery Truth Social post, Trump accuses Beijing of “holding the world captive” through new restrictions on rare earth exports.

By TRH Foreign Affairs Desk

October 10, 2025 — US President Donald Trump on Friday lashed out at China over its decision to tighten export controls on rare earth elements and related technologies, calling Beijing’s move “a hostile and sinister attempt to hold the world captive.” His post sent the US stock market crashing, with Dow Jones tumbling in the afternoon trade.

In a lengthy Truth Social post, Trump said China has begun sending letters to multiple countries announcing new restrictions that would affect “each and every element of production having to do with rare earths” — a step he described as unprecedented.

“Essentially, it would clog the markets and make life difficult for virtually every country in the world — especially for China,” Trump wrote, adding that “other countries” had contacted his administration expressing anger over Beijing’s trade actions.

Trump said the US-China relationship had been on a positive trajectory in recent months, calling the sudden shift “a real surprise… not only to me but to all the leaders of the free world.” He hinted that his upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the APEC Summit in South Korea may now be scrapped.

Trump accused China of quietly building a “monopoly position” in rare earths, magnets, and related materials — industries essential for defence, semiconductors, and electric vehicles — and warned that the United States has its own “much stronger” monopolies it could deploy in retaliation.

“One of the policies we are calculating at this moment is a massive increase of tariffs on Chinese products coming into the United States,” Trump declared, adding that “many other countermeasures” were under serious consideration.

China’s new rules, announced earlier this week, require exporters to seek special licenses for products containing over 0.1% rare earths sourced or refined in China — an expansion of earlier curbs targeting raw materials. Beijing said the move was intended to prevent “misuse” of rare earths in military applications.

Analysts see the latest escalation as deepening the strategic standoff between Washington and Beijing. “You basically have to ignore export controls to get a deal done,” said Kelsey Broderick, a China analyst, underscoring how both nations are leveraging critical mineral supply chains as tools of geopolitical pressure.