Japan's Fuji Electric workers detained in China, possibly over rare earths

TOKYO/BEIJING - Two Japanese employees of Fuji Electric Co. have been detained in China since last month, possibly over attempts to take rare earth-related products overseas, sources familiar with the matter said Wednesday, as Beijing has tightened export controls on such items.

The Japanese government confirmed that they were both detained in May in the northeastern port city of Dalian for allegedly violating a law regarding the smuggling of prohibited imports or exports, without disclosing further details for privacy reasons.