The US president’s escalation comes despite a 90-day pause on increased tariffs that has already been agreed, and as negotiations between the world’s two largest economies loom.
United States President Donald Trump has said that China must give the US more magnets or “we have to charge them 200 percent tariff or something” amid a trade dispute between the two nations.
The US president made the claim to reporters on Monday.
China is increasingly sensitive about rare earth elements and its control over their supply, adding several rare earth items and magnets to its export restriction list in April in retaliation for tariff hikes by the US.
Beijing represents 90 percent of the global magnet market, which is critical to key products, including semiconductor chips used in products like smartphones.
