China’s commerce minister has accepted an “urgent” invitation to Brussels, the EU’s trade chief Maros Sefcovic said on Tuesday, as the bloc looks to unpick Beijing’s restrictions on rare earth mineral exports and defuse a row over Dutch-based chipmaker Nexperia.
The EU is seeking China to relax export licensing requirements for rare earth elements and magnets, which are crucial to manufacturing hi-tech goods, from fighter jets to electric vehicles, and which were broadened earlier this month.
It is also hoping to avoid a major fallout over Nexperia, after Dutch authorities effectively took control of the company from its Chinese owners last week, citing threats to the supply of semiconductors and, by extension, national security.
Sefcovic, who described the restrictions as “unjustified and harmful”, said he spoke for “almost two hours” with Commerce Minister Wang Wentao earlier on Tuesday, during which the Chinese official agreed to talks in the Belgian capital.
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The Europe-China trade relationship: deficits, disputes and de-risking
The Europe-China trade relationship: deficits, disputes and de-risking
“At the conclusion of this discussion, I invited the Chinese authorities to come to Brussels in the coming days to find urgent solutions. Minister Wang Wentao has accepted this invitation,” Sefcovic told reporters in Strasbourg.
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