Chinese premier tours rare earths production hub amid rising US tech rivalry

China’s premier has vowed the country will consolidate its advantages in traditional industries like rare earths while also striving to accelerate innovation in frontier technologies such as artificial intelligence, as Beijing prepares to unveil its latest five-year plan.Premier Li Qiang made the call during a visit earlier this week to Ganzhou in the central Chinese province of Jiangxi – one of the world’s largest production bases for heavy rare earth elements, a strategic resource essential to a range of hi-tech industries.China’s dominance of global mining and processing of the minerals has become a crucial strategic advantage in recent years, giving it vital leverage when sparring with the United States over a string of trade and technology disputes.Li’s trip included a visit to the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Ganjiang Innovation Academy, tours of critical mineral producers, and a meeting with local business leaders and researchers, Xinhua reported.“The value of rare earths in boosting advanced manufacturing and green, low-carbon transformation is increasingly prominent,” he said.The visit comes as the US intensifies efforts to break China’s chokehold over access to rare earths, after a slew of major Western firms faced supply disruptions amid the US-China trade war last year.Earlier this month, Washington hosted a gathering of more than 50 countries to discuss forming a bloc for supplies of critical minerals including rare earths – a move widely seen as an attempt to loosen China’s control over the industry.