China Suspends Sanctions on Korean Shipbuilders, Pauses Export Controls After U.S. Trade Detente — 2nd Update

Beijing has suspended sanctions on South Korean shipbuilders tied to a U.S. probe and paused some export controls on critical minerals, while pledging to curb exports of drug precursors following a trade detente with Washington last month.

Shortly after the U.S. suspended its investigation into China's shipping sector, Beijing's Commerce Ministry said Monday it would halt sanctions for one year on five subsidiaries of South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean, which had been targeted over their alleged role in a U.S. probe.

China's Transport Ministry also said it would also pause its own investigation into the U.S. shipping probe and suspend special port fees previously levied on U.S. vessels.

Monday's rollback of retaliatory measures was followed by an announcement from Chinese authorities, including the police and customs, that China would add more than a dozen fentanyl precursors to its list of controlled exports to the U.S., Mexico and Canada.

The move came after U.S. President Trump last week announced a halving of fentanyl-related tariffs on Chinese goods, to 10%, from those imposed earlier this year.

The White House previously said Beijing would take "significant measures to end the flow of fentanyl" to the U.S. following a summit between the two countries' leaders in South Korea in late October.

Separately, China's Commerce Ministry on Sunday temporarily lifted a ban on approving exports of "dual-use items" related to gallium, germanium, antimony and super-hard materials to the U.S. It also suspended stricter reviews of graphite exports to the U.S.

The suspensions took effect Sunday and will remain in place until Nov. 27 next year, the ministry said in a statement.

The bans were originally imposed last December in response to U.S. technology restrictions aimed at curbing China's access to advanced memory chips crucial for artificial intelligence applications.

Gallium is vital for semiconductor and electronics manufacturing, germanium is used in defense and space technologies--and antimony is used in rechargeable batteries commonly found in vehicles.

Before the December ban, China had been one of the main suppliers of these minerals to the U.S. Separately, on Friday, the Commerce Ministry said it had paused expanded export controls on rare earths announced in early October, also for a one-year period.

The ministry had said last month that foreign suppliers would need Beijing's approval to export goods containing 0.1% or more of certain rare-earth materials originating from China.

In a fact sheet released after President Trump's meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in October, the White House said China would issue general export licenses covering rare earths, gallium, germanium, antimony and graphite to benefit U.S. end users and their global suppliers.

"The general license means the de facto removal of controls China imposed since 2023," the White House said.

Write to Singapore Editors at singaporeeditors@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 10, 2025 07:04 ET (12:04 GMT)