GENEVA/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China has lost a dispute at the World Trade Organization over restrictions on its exports of rare earth metals, tungsten and molybdenum, the U.S. Trade Representative's office said in an emailed statement on Wednesday.
The complaint about the restrictions on the highly prized commodities was made by the United States, European Union and Japan two years ago.
"This victory shows that we stand prepared to take action whenever necessary to protect the high-quality middle class American jobs that trade supports," U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said in the statement.
The WTO is expected to publish its ruling in the case later on Wednesday. Any of the parties in the case can appeal within 60 days.
(Reporting by Tom Miles and Krista Hughes; Editing by Andrew Heavens)
