China has tightened its export controls on fentanyl precursor chemicals exported to North America, as China and the U.S. continue to make progress toward ending months of trade turmoil between the two nations.

According to The New York Times, China's Ministry of Commerce will now require manufacturers to get a license in order to export 13 separate chemicals to the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Among those chemicals are several precursors used to synthesize fentanyl, an opioid that's fueled a sharp rise in overdoses across the United States for years. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that fentanyl killed more than 48,000 people in 2024, as well as over 76,000 the year prior.

The Trump administration has long criticized China for not adequately addressing illicit shipments of fentanyl precursors into the U.S. President Donald Trump has also cited the fentanyl crisis as one of the prime motivations behind hefty tariffs that have been imposed against Chinese imports in recent months. In a show of good faith, Beijing previously pledged to "take significant measures" to curb the flow of fentanyl as part of a trade deal announced by the White House in October.

This comes as trade relations between the U.S. and China have thawed considerably. In late-October, the two countries agreed to suspend reciprocal port fees for vessels linked to the other for a year. Around that same time, China also agreed to resume purchasing American soybeans, and pause its export controls on rare earth minerals.