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By Eduardo Baptista and Selena Li BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) -China called U.S. President Donald Trump's latest tariffs on Chinese goods hypocritical on Sunday and defended its curbs on exports of rare earth elements and equipment, but stopped short of imposing new levies on U.S. products. Trump on Friday responded to Beijing's most recent export controls by imposing additional tariffs of 100% on China's U.S.-bound exports, along with new export controls on critical software by November 1. The revived trade tensions have rattled Wall Street, sending Big Tech shares tumbling, worried foreign companies dependent on China's production of processed rare earths and rare earth magnets, and could derail a summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping tentatively scheduled for later this month.  RESPONDING TO TRUMP The Chinese commerce ministry's statement on Sunday was Beijing's first direct response to Trump's lengthy Truth Social post on Friday, where he accused Beijing of suddenly raising trade tensions after an uneasy truce was reached six months ago between the world's two largest economies, allowing them to trade goods without sky-high tariff rates. "Our relationship with China over the past six months has been a very good one, thereby making this move on Trade an even more surprising one," Trump said. The commerce ministry said in an equally lengthy statement that its export controls on rare-earth elements followed a series of U.S. measures since bilateral trade talks in Madrid last month. Beijing cited the addition of Chinese companies to a U.S. trade blacklist and Washington's imposition of port fees on China-linked ships as examples. "The U.S. actions have severely harmed China’s interests and undermined the atmosphere of bilateral economic and trade talks, and China is resolutely opposed to them," the ministry said. Beijing stopped short of explicitly connecting these U.S. actions to its export curbs on rare-earth elements, saying they were motivated by concern about these materials' military applications at a time of "frequent military conflicts". It also held off on announcing a corresponding levy on China-bound U.S. imports, unlike earlier in the year, when both superpowers progressively ratcheted up tariffs on each other until the U.S. rate was 145% while China's was 125%. 'PATH FOR NEGOTIATIONS' China's decision not to immediately respond in kind to Trump's opening salvo in this latest round of trade tensions could leave the door open for both countries to negotiate a de-escalation, analysts said. "By clarifying the rationale behind its retaliatory measures, Beijing is also outlining a potential path forward for negotiations. The ball is now in the U.S. court," said Alfredo Montufar-Helu, managing director at strategic advisory firm GreenPoint. But Hutong Research said in a note on Saturday that if Beijing chooses not to respond to Trump's 100% tariff hike, it may signal that it no longer prioritises a long-term deal with him, reflecting diminished confidence in his ability to restrain hawks or stick to commitments. "Key watchpoints now: Whether Beijing moves to freeze or complicate the TikTok sale, given its political symbolism. Proceeding with the sale under current conditions would be seen as a major concession (from Beijing)," the research firm said. Other tools in Beijing's arsenal include regulatory action targeting U.S. companies. China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) said last month leading U.S. AI chip manufacturer Nvidia violated the country's anti-monopoly law, during U.S.-China trade talks in Madrid. The market regulator on Friday announced an antitrust investigation into U.S. chip manufacturer Qualcomm over its June 2025 acquisition of Israeli chip designer Autotalks. A few hours after the commerce ministry's response to Trump's post and tariff hike, SAMR said Qualcomm had completed the acquisition without informing the regulator, adding that the U.S. firm had acknowledged this. "Based on clear facts and conclusive evidence, our bureau lawfully initiated an investigation into Qualcomm's unlawful…acquisition of Autotalks," SAMR said. CHINA SAYS EXPORT CONTROLS ARE NOT EXPORT BANS The commerce ministry also countered Trump's narrative that China was using its dominance in processed rare earths and rare earth magnets to attack all countries, not just the U.S. "We have been contacted by other Countries who are extremely angry at this great trade hostility, which came out of nowhere," Trump said on Friday on Truth Social. China produces over 90% of the world's processed rare earths and rare earth magnets. The 17 rare earths are vital materials in products ranging from electric vehicles to aircraft engines and military radars. Exports of 12 of them are restricted after China's commerce ministry on Thursday added five – holmium, erbium, thulium, europium and ytterbium – along with related materials. The commerce ministry statement on Sunday sought to reassure foreign companies spooked by the latest export curbs, promising to promote compliant trade by granting general-purpose licenses and license exemptions. "China's export controls are not export bans," it said. "Any export applications for civilian use that comply with regulations will be approved, and relevant enterprises need not worry." (Reporting by Eduardo Baptista in Beijing and Selena Li in Hong Kong; Editing by William Mallard)

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(Reuters) -Three workers have died since Hyundai Motor started construction of its $7.6 billion auto plant in Georgia in 2022, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing a review of federal records.  Dozens of the company's current and former workers, many of them safety coordinators who helped oversee construction, told the newspaper in interviews that the work environment involved many inexperienced immigrant laborers, often lax safety standards and frequent accidents. The plant, which is operated through a joint venture between Hyundai and South Korea's LG Energy Solution, has been in the limelight since an immigration raid last month that detained hundreds of South Korean workers in the largest single-site enforcement operation in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's history. Apart from the deaths, more than a dozen workers have suffered serious injuries, including from falling without wearing harnesses and getting crushed by forklifts, according to the WSJ. The workers interviewed by the WSJ said Hyundai did not ensure that people were properly trained, and safety regulators did little to prevent worksite violations, the report added. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Hyundai did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.  Hyundai said in a statement to the WSJ that it is committed to following immigration laws and that it doesn't compromise safety for the sake of speed, adding that the company took steps to address safety issues in response to incidents during construction. "We acted immediately and comprehensively to prevent anything like this from happening again," Hyundai CEO Jose Munoz told the newspaper. "I traveled to Georgia to tell our team directly: Their safety comes before production schedules, before costs, before profits, before everything." Construction on the electric vehicle and battery plant, located in Bryan County about 30 miles west of Savannah, is ongoing. (Reporting by Angela Christy in Bengaluru; Editing by Mark Porter)

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By Maggie Fick LONDON (Reuters) -AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot looked relaxed standing in the Oval Office on Friday as U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled a medicine deal that will lower drug prices for millions of Americans. The hard work had paid off, allowing Soriot to clinch the first agreement for a non-U.S. drugmaker and shield his Anglo-Swedish company from threatened steep tariffs on imports to the U.S. – the world's largest pharmaceuticals market. That moment at the White House was the culmination of public and private meetings between Soriot and Trump officials, stretching back to November last year when Trump won election, three sources close to the negotiations told Reuters. And it went down to the wire with a last-minute push from AstraZeneca to seal the agreement. "You've kept me up at night and my team as well. But it's been really worth it," Soriot joked to Trump. ASTRAZENECA CEO MET TRUMP AT ROYAL BANQUET The agreement will likely bolster the 66-year-old French-born Australian's reputation as something of a Trump whisperer, even as many CEOs globally grapple with the president's whipsaw tariff changes. Trump argues Americans pay far too much – often three times more, studies show – for prescription medicines than in other wealthy nations and set a September 29 deadline for drugmakers to cut prices, using threats of tariffs up to 100% as leverage. Soriot's charm offensive started the week after Trump won the U.S. election. On November 12, AstraZeneca announced a $3.5 billion plan to expand manufacturing and research in the United States. Soriot, who arrived in the U.S. early last week, most recently met Trump at a September 18 royal banquet dinner at Windsor Castle in Britain, the first source said. Over the summer he met with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick at least three times in Britain and the United States, that source added. All three sources asked not to be named as the talks were confidential. Soriot also developed a close relationship with vocal Trump ally and Republican high-flier, Governor Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, all three sources said. That led to a rapidly-assembled deal for a $4.5 billion plant in the state, which took just over a month to go from initial talks to an agreement. On Thursday, a day before the Oval Office signing, Soriot and Youngkin stood shoulder-to-shoulder, shovels in hand, to break ground at the site. "Youngkin has a lot of ambition and his connections with the administration were clearly helpful," a second source said. "The Virginia facility deal showed the two sides were on the same page." ASTRAZENECA: A 'VERY AMERICAN COMPANY' Following the agreement and a deal a week earlier by U.S. peer Pfizer that boosted global healthcare stocks, Wall Street now expects more companies to reach similar agreements with the Trump administration in the coming weeks. Shore Capital analyst Sean Conroy said that Soriot, who publicly backed Trump on drug pricing and called AstraZeneca a "very American company", secured a seat at the table in Washington with smart strategic announcements. "That rhetoric has clearly resonated with the Trump administration and its agenda around Most Favored Nation drug pricing," Conroy said, referring to the lowest price paid in other wealthy countries after fees and rebates. SOME CONCESSIONS, BUT A WIN FOR ASTRAZENECA Analysts had estimated that AstraZeneca was less exposed to U.S. tariffs than many other major drugmakers, having already established substantial manufacturing capacity in the United States. But tougher regulation and more price pressure in the UK, where many drugmakers have criticised the government for not doing enough to support the sector, gave AstraZeneca a strong business argument for the U.S. deal. Britain accounts for a small percentage of the company's revenues but is where it is headquartered and primarily listed. AstraZeneca is the largest listed firm on London's FTSE 100 Index. In contrast to Britain, U.S. officials are in the midst of an aggressive push to spur investment from firms like AstraZeneca and put in ample energy and effort to assist them, the first source said. In July, AstraZeneca announced a sprawling $50 billion investment plan for the U.S. market and in late September said it would do a full U.S. listing of its shares alongside its current London listing. By the time Pfizer signed its deal on September 30, AstraZeneca was already nearing its own finalised agreement, the three sources said. Soriot headed to the U.S. early last week even as the last details were being ironed out. Each day a deal looked close but didn't arrive. The Virginia plant agreement solidified goodwill between the company and the Trump administration, which ultimately helped push the deal over the line, the third source said. In the end, while AstraZeneca made concessions on some drug prices for Medicaid and pledged to produce more medicines locally, its U.S. arrangement marks a win for the company. It gives more clarity, analysts say, without significantly denting expected revenues, which AstraZeneca is aggressively forecasting at $80 billion by 2030, with half of that coming from increased sales in the United States. "Friday's deal is the last piece in the puzzle," the third source added. (Reporting by Maggie Fick; Additional reporting by Sabrina Valle in New York; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Joe Bavier)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)