Xi Is Testing Japan’s Ties With Trump in Latest Trade Battle (2)

China is testing Donald Trump’s support for America’s top ally in Asia by imposing export controls on Japan months after the US leader boasted he’d settled the rare earth issue “for the world.”

Beijing turned up the heat on Tokyo this week by banning all dual-use shipments for military use — potentially targeting an estimated 40% of Chinese exports to its neighbor — and threatening tighter controls on rare earths that underpin Japan’s auto sector. Hours later, China opened an anti-dumping probe into a key chipmaking material, taking aim at another pillar of Japanese industry.

US President Donald Trump and Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

Photographer: ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP

Taken together the ...