United States Slows China Aircraft-Part Exports to Gain Rare-Earth Trade Leverage

Highlights

• Washington is restricting aircraft-part export licenses to China, including landing gear and hydraulic fluid, to counter Beijing's rare-earth leverage.
• China controls critical rare-earth processing and magnet supply chains, while the US retains leverage in jet engines, avionics, and semiconductors.
• The September Trump-Xi trade truce extends into January 2027, but rare-earth shipment levels remain unresolved, sustaining investor uncertainty.
• Each side's export restrictions accelerate the other's push for domestic alternatives, deepening industrial separation between the two powers.
• The strategic winner will be whoever eliminates supply-chain dependency first, raising the value of ex-China rare-earth production and magnet recycling.