Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil was the first senior representative of the German ruling coalition to visit China

Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil was the first senior representative of the German ruling coalition to visit China

 Maxim Shemetov

Germany's finance minister said Thursday Beijing had made a "clear" commitment on ensuring rare earth supplies, following the first visit to China by a minister from Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government.

Germany and China have long had deep economic ties, but those have frayed in recent times over issues ranging from claims of unfair trade practices to protectionism.

Originally published on doc.afp.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.