Beijing: In a major escalation of the bruising US-China trade war, Beijing on Thursday accused the US of following "naked economic terrorism" and threatened to the stop export of rare-earth metals, a key resource for Apple's iPhones and hi-tech missile guidance systems to America.

The two economies are engaged in a trade war after talks to resolve the issue between them apparently failed, with US President Donald Trump putting a ban on Huawei, China's telecom equipment manufacturer, and threatening to slap additional tariffs on the remaining $300 billion worth of Chinese exports.