China has scrapped its limit on exports of rare earth minerals. The new policy was implemented on January 1.

Rare earth materials are used in a wide range of hi-tech products including smartphones, satellites and military defence equipment.

China’s Ministry of Commerce announced on December 31 that rare earths would be removed from a list of products subject to export quotas. That is according to a report from state-run news agency Xinhua. Export contracts will still continue to be monitored by the ministry.

The decision came after the World Trade Organization (WTO) ruled in August 2014 that such a quota system for rare earths violated international trade rules.

China, which is said to account for 90 percent of the world’s production of rare earth minerals, first implemented the quota system for them in 1999, financial media service Bloomberg News reported. The United States lodged a formal complaint with the WTO in March 2012, backed by others including Brazil, Japan and the European Union.

However, Chinese state-run media reported that since 2011 the quota had never been fully used due to weak overseas demand.