China has approved temporary export licenses to rare-earth suppliers of the top US automakers, Reuters reported on Friday, citing unidentified people familiar with the matter.
It's unclear what materials are covered by the licenses and at least some are valid for six months, Reuters said. China's restrictions on exports of rare earths, the dormant source of the materials, pose risks to global automakers' supply chains.
Suppliers to General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Jeep-maker Stellantis NV received permission on Monday to export some rare earth supplies, Reuters said, citing one of the people familiar. Ford's shares rose 2.2% as of 11:58 a.m. in New York on Friday. Stellantis gained 2.4% while GM's stock was up less than 1%.
Stellantis is working with its suppliers “to ensure an efficient licensing process,” the company said in a statement, adding that it has been able “to address immediate production concerns without major interruptions.”
The White House had no immediate comment. GM, Ford and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday agreed to hold more talks, with Trump saying the leaders in their phone call “were straightening out some of the points, having to do mostly with rare earth magnets and some other things.”
China's decision to restrict exports of rare-earth minerals in April raised trade tensions with the US, endangering a fragile tariff truce between the world's two largest economies. The move choked off materials that are crucial for aerospace companies and military contractors, in addition to automakers.
The US and China traded accusations that each violated the agreement, with Beijing citing Trump administration actions to crack down on tech exports and student visas.
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