China imposes new export limits on drug-making chemicals ahead of Xi's US visit

In a statement released on Tuesday, Beijing's commerce ministry declared that two categories of precursor chemicals will now be subject to export-control applications for shipments to the United States, Mexico and Canada. The restrictions are effective immediately and aim to limit the supply of substances used to manufacture fentanyl, a potent opioid driving a severe drug epidemic in the United States. This policy shift arrives just before President Xi Jinping's scheduled visit to Washington, where he will meet President Donald Trump to address trade, artificial intelligence and the ongoing US-Iran conflict.

Earlier in May, China introduced similar controls after a prior Trump visit to Beijing. The United States has previously imposed tariffs on Chinese goods in response to the fentanyl crisis, though those duties were overturned by the US Supreme Court in February.