BEIJING, Oct 28 (Reuters) - China will not use its dominance of global rare earths supplies as a "bargaining tool" with foreign economies, a spokesman for the country's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Thursday.
The spokesman, Zhu Hongren, made the comments after reduced shipments of the industrial ores to Japan ignited international concern that China may be using its rare earth exports as an economic and political lever. China supplies about 97 percent of the world's rare earth consumption.
(Reporting by Wang Lan; Writing by Chris Buckley; Editing by Ken Wills)