China limited graphite exports in response to US actions

China has imposed special permits for the export of three grades of graphite. In this way, Beijing responded to US restrictions on the export of state-of-the-art chips to China.

The "Financial Times" (FT) writes about it.

China explains its move with "national security" considerations.

According to the US Geological Survey, China will account for about 65% of graphite supplies in 2022. This material is used, in particular, in electric vehicle batteries.

On October 18, the United States tightened restrictions on the export of state-of-the-art chips to China. Beijing criticized Washingtonʼs actions. Chinaʼs Ministry of Commerce stated that, “the US constantly exaggerates the concept of national security, abuses export control measures, and engages in unilateral acts of intimidation. China is categorically dissatisfied and strongly denies [this]."

• In July, Beijing imposed similar restrictions on gallium and germanium, metals used in several strategic industries, including electric vehicles, microchips and some weapons. The Chinese government also cited national security issues.
• The "Wall Street Journal" (WSJ), citing sources, wrote that the United States will restrict Chinese companiesʼ access to American cloud services in order to block Chinese artificial intelligence developers from accessing high-quality chips through the cloud.