China Makes Most of Tungsten Clout in Opening Trade War Salvo
- Beijing also puts curbs on molybdenum, tellurium and indium
- China is top producer of the metals used in defense, aviation
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China put export controls on tungsten and other niche metals used in the electronics, aviation and defense industries as it retaliated in a targeted way to US tariffs.
As well as tungsten — which is known for its remarkable density and high melting point and is most commonly used in armor-piercing missiles — Beijing imposed export curbs on molybdenum, tellurium, bismuth and indium on Tuesday. The announcement came immediately after President Trump fired the opening salvo in the trade war, hitting all US imports from China with a blanket 10% tariff.