CHINA JUST CUT OFF RARE EARTH MAGNETS

China just stopped sending rare earth magnets to the U.S.;  those tiny but mighty metal pieces that power literally everything: electric cars, fighter jets, drones, missiles... even your car’s steering. Why? Trump dropped new tariffs. China didn’t like that.

So now they’re like, “Cool story, enjoy building stuff without our magnets.”

The metals and the special magnets made with them can now be shipped out of China only with special export licenses. But Beijing has barely started setting up a system for issuing the licenses. Industry executives said that supplies of minerals and products outside the country could run low.

Trump’s rapidly escalating trade war with China has scrambled prospects for many global businesses. And there is no end in sight.

The U.S. administration has been waiting for the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, to call Trump, but Beijing appears wary of putting Xi in an unpredictable situation with the U.S. president.

Here’s the wild part: China makes 90% of the world’s rare earth magnets and refines 100% of the heavy-duty ones. Basically, they’ve got the world’s supply on lock—and they just slammed the door.

Detroit? Panicking.

Defense contractors? Sweating.

It's like cutting off Wi-Fi during final-exam week in colleges.

Trump took the first swing. China swung back. Now it’s a high-stakes staring contest — and nobody wants to blink.