China imposed export controls on 10 US companies involved in defense and rare earths mining in response to Washington’s blacklist of Chinese firms, Beijing said on Monday.

The move comes a month after US President Donald Trump visited Beijing, seeking to stabilize fraught relations during talks with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.

Although the countries agreed to work towards reducing tariffs, ties have since been tested as both sides stunt the other in tech and defense.

Washington released a new blacklist this month of 80 companies and their subsidiaries it said were aiding the Chinese military.

That saw tech giants Alibaba and Baidu added, as well as electric vehicle giant BYD, prompting Beijing to threaten retaliation.

China’s new export controls come “in response to the US government’s egregious act of adding to its so-called ‘Chinese military enterprise list'”, the China’s Commerce Ministry said in a statement, adding the move was also to “safeguard national security”.

The 10 entities include Aveox, which holds aerospace defense contracts with the US military, and Oshkosh Defense, which produces military vehicle fleets. It also lists US rare earths producers MP Materials and USA Rare Earth.

Exporters are prohibited from providing dual-use items to the listed entities, the Commerce Ministry said, adding that “any relevant export activities currently underway must cease immediately”.

The ban also applies to “organizations or individuals in any country or region … transferring or providing dual-use items originating in China to said entities”, it said.

China’s finance ministry simultaneously announced a ban on agencies involved in public procurement from buying products made by 46 US firms, including Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Boeing’s defense division.

Also listed were divisions of General Dynamics and Anduril Industries, which are major US military contractors, and several aerospace firms.

Companies with US investments operating in China are excluded, according to a statement from the finance ministry, which said measures would take effect from Monday. (AFP)