China boosts exports of rare earth magnets to US
Beijing — China’s exports of rare earth magnets to the US in June soared by more than seven times from May, a sharp recovery in the flow of critical minerals essential to electric vehicles and wind turbines after a Sino-US trade deal.
Outbound shipments to the US from the world’s largest producer of rare earth magnets surged to 353 tonnes in June, up 660% from May, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday.
China, which provides more than 90% of global supply of rare earth magnets, decided in early April to add several rare earth items to its export restriction list in retaliation for US tariffs.
The subsequent sharp falls in shipments in April and May, due to the lengthy times required to secure export licences, had rattled global suppliers, forcing some automakers outside China to halt partial production due to shortage of rare earths. Reuters
Brussels warns against banking tie-up interference
Brussels — Brussels is stepping up pressure on national governments to stop obstructing bank consolidation, as it warns against Italian and Spanish interference in banking tie-ups, the Financial Times said on Sunday, citing commission officials.
Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Reuters
Beijing imports 30% less coal from Indonesia
Beijing — China’s coal imports from Indonesia, its largest supplier, fell 30% year-on-year in June, customs data showed on Sunday, outpacing a decline in total coal imports as buyers shifted away from coal with lower heat content.
Indonesian imports were 11.62-million tonnes in June. For the first six months of the year, China imported 90.98-million tonnes of Indonesian coal, down 12% from the same period a year earlier, the data showed. A global fall in coal prices has made higher-quality coal, which yields more energy per tonne, more cost-competitive. Reuters
Nvidia curbs AI chip supply for Chinese customers
Bengaluru — Nvidia has told its Chinese customers it has limited supplies of H20 chips, the most powerful AI chip it had been allowed to sell to China under US export restrictions, The Information reported on Saturday.
Nvidia said this week it was planning to resume sales of the H20 chips to China, though under the policy change the US must still approve licences for the export of the chips.
The US government’s April ban on sales of the H20 chips had forced Nvidia to void customer orders and cancel manufacturing capacity it had booked at chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), said the report in tech publication The Information, citing two people with knowledge of the matter.
TSMC had shifted its H20 production lines to produce other chips for other customers, and manufacturing new chips from scratch could take nine months, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said at a media event in Beijing this week, according to the report. Reuters
Alliance to operate Saudi national low-cost airline
Cairo — The United Arab Emirates's carrier Air Arabia was among an alliance of three companies that won a bid to operate a new Saudi national low-cost airline, the Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation said on Sunday.
The new airline would operate domestic and international flights from King Fahd international airport in Dammam, the authority said. Reuters
India probes Google, Meta in money laundering case
Bengaluru — India’s financial crime fighting agency has summoned executives of tech giants Google and Meta to its headquarters on Monday as it investigates accusations of money laundering on online betting apps, two government sources said.
The Enforcement Directorate is investigating whether the platforms eased the way for promotion and wider reach of betting apps through advertisements, the first source said.
A date of July 21 has been set for the appearances at the agency’s headquarters in the capital, New Delhi, the source added.
A second government source accused Google and Meta of using their platforms to promote illegal activities, despite a government advisory against the advertisement of any form of betting. Reuters
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