China Is Said to Halt Trade in Rare-Earth Minerals With Japan

Akihiro Ohata, the Japanese trade minister, said Friday that his ministry was aware that Japanese traders were complaining of a halt from China of a crucial category of minerals and that the government was investigating the matter.

The Chinese Commerce Ministry has denied that it has halted exports of the minerals, known as rare earths and used in products like wind turbines and hybrid cars. And Mr. Ohata said the Chinese Commerce Ministry had also informed Japan that it had not issued a ban on exporting the minerals.

But industry executives said that factories in China were still not shipping to Japan after Chinese customs agents blocked shipments earlier this week.

Eight executives, analysts and traders in the Chinese, Japanese and North American rare earths industries said that China had suspended the shipments Tuesday in response to a diplomatic dispute over Japan’s detention of a Chinese fishing trawler captain.

Some theorized that the action might have been taken by Chinese customs agents, rather than as a formal trade embargo imposed by Commerce Ministry regulations, to give Beijing more negotiating room with Japan.