Trump’s China visit raises fresh doubts over chip exports and rare-earth access

Despite warm public gestures during President Donald Trump’s May 2026 visit to Beijing, substantive clarity on access to Chinese rare-earth minerals and approvals for advanced U.S. chip exports remained elusive. Chinese President Xi Jinping emphasised a willingness to “open wider” to U.S. business, but officials gave few concrete commitments on the technical approvals that manufacturers need.

Reports indicate that while senior delegations discussed trade, technology and AI supply chains, China’s export curbs on certain rare-earth materials and the U.S. export controls on advanced semiconductors continue to complicate outcomes. Reuters and CNBC coverage note ongoing talks about extending a temporary truce on rare-earth curbs, yet customs and licensing data suggest flows remain below pre-restriction levels.

Markets reacted cautiously: U.S. futures and technology stocks showed some early optimism on expectations of reduced tensions, but Chinese indexes and commodity-linked names saw mixed moves as investors assessed how quickly rare-earth shipments and high-end chip deliveries could resume. The persistence of licensing delays for specific components and magnets could prolong supply constraints for sectors from automotive to advanced computing.

In the broader geopolitical and economic context, the visit tests the durability of the limited trade truce first negotiated in late 2025. Control over rare-earth supply remains a strategic lever for Beijing, while Washington continues to cite national security as grounds for selective export restrictions on semiconductor tools and AI-capable chips. As a result, observers expect incremental, not sweeping, policy shifts in the near term.

Analysts say the next market-moving signals will come from concrete export-license decisions and from any formal wording in post-visit communiqués that clarifies the scope of technology exchange. If China eases approvals for commercial rare-earth shipments and the U.S. relaxes some export controls, supply chains could stabilise; absent that, firms are likely to accelerate diversification and onshoring efforts.