Champagne hopeful G7 can lower rare earth reliance on China

Minister of Finance and National Revenue Francois-Philippe Champagne speaks in the in the Foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, on Monday, Oct. 6, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Canada’s finance minister voiced optimism Thursday that the Group of Seven nations can “move from dependence to resilience” in the face of China’s tightening rare earth export controls.

Speaking to AFP in Washington, Canadian Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said rare earths were a key topic in around two hours of talks with his G7 counterparts on Wednesday.

He expressed hope, however, that Canada and its allies can find solutions together to “move from dependence to resilience.”

Champagne’s remarks to AFP came on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank’s fall meetings, where he chaired the gathering of G7 finance leaders.

“Around the table, we have all the solutions to address this issue, including Canada, which has critical minerals,” he said.

Other leaders in the grouping -- consisting of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States -- have raised worries over China’s rare earth controls as well.

Japan’s finance minister Katsunobu Kato earlier told reporters in Washington that his country is “deeply concerned” about the extensive restrictions China announced, urging for a united G7 response.

UK finance minister Rachel Reeves criticized Beijing’s move as a “wrong decision” that is dangerous for the global economy.

Meanwhile, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday slammed China’s actions, vowing that: “We are not going to let a group of bureaucrats in Beijing try to manage the global supply chains.”

Bessent also warned: “If some in the Chinese government want to slow down the global economy through disappointing actions and through economic coercion, the Chinese economy will be hurt the most.”

In early October, China announced fresh controls on the export of rare earth technologies and items, drawing a fiery rebuke from US President Donald Trump.

Trump swiftly threatened to slap an additional 100-percent US tariff on goods from China, a move that would again snarl supply chains.

Tit-for-tat tariffs between the world’s two biggest economies hit triple-digit levels earlier this year, although Washington and Beijing have since de-escalated tensions.

But their truce remains shaky, with Trump previously also threatening to scrap a potential meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping after Beijing announced the rare earth curbs.