Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that China has tightened its export controls on silver, bringing controls for the precious metal in line with those on rare earth minerals. The new export control policy for silver officially took effect on January 1, upgrading from the previous quota system to a strict “one-order-one-approval” license system.
Only companies with an annual output of more than 40 or 80 tons of silver (depending on which region of China the company is located in) and a demonstrated history of three consecutive years of exports can apply for qualifications to continue exporting under the new policy. Approval scope for exports covers key dimensions such as buyer background and compliance of use, and the control period will last at least until the end of 2027. The new policy marks the formal inclusion of silver in China’s national strategic resource list, upgrading it from a “commodity” to a “strategic material,” with export management now on par with rare earths.
Elon Musk recently posted on social media platform X: “This is not a good thing. Silver is needed in many industrial production processes.” Silver is crucial to the U.S. industrial and defense supply chain. The U.S. added silver to its National Critical Minerals List last November, citing its wide applications in areas such as circuitry, batteries, solar panels, and antibacterial medical devices.
China has long been one of the world’s largest silver producers, at one point contributing nearly 90 percent of global production (including byproducts).
Source: Lianhe Zaobao, January 2, 2026
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/finance/china/story20260102-8044089