After being suspended for 6 months, China has finally started supplying rare earth magnets to India. This has brought some relief to sectors like electric vehicles, renewable energy and consumer electronics.
While starting the supply of rare earth magnets, Beijing has imposed strict conditions on their use. The Dragon country has clearly stated that the rare earth magnets they send cannot be used for military purposes and cannot be exported to America. These earth magnets must be used only for the needs of India's local industries. Beijing has sought assurance on this matter. For this, Indian companies have had to submit end-user certificates. But Beijing has not yet responded to applications from all companies. Currently, only four companies will be able to import rare earth magnets from China. The list includes Hitachi, Continental, Jyoti Structures and DE Diamonds.
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Regarding this matter, a senior official from the industry told The Economic Times, “There has been some change in the situation regarding supply. Four Indian companies have been approved to import rare earth magnets”
On Thursday, India's Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal had also confirmed the approval for four Indian companies to import rare earth magnets from China.
India's electric vehicle manufacturing companies are the biggest buyers of such magnets. Besides this, these magnets have significant use in defence, aerospace, and electronics manufacturing sectors. But 90 % of rare earth magnet production is under China's control. Therefore, the entire world is more or less dependent on Beijing in this regard. Beijing is taking advantage of this opportunity.
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In the recent past, there have been multiple indications of normalising relations between Beijing and New Delhi. After being suspended for more than 5 years, direct flight services between India and China have started this week. Now, some complications in the case of Earth's magnets have also been resolved.
