In response to legislative pressures such as the U.S. Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and new European forced labor regulations, Beijing has adopted an assertive stance rather than retreating. China is actively developing its own corporate responsibility and supply chain standards, limiting the operational scope of certain Western audit systems within its borders, and aggressively promoting China-led frameworks on the international stage.
A recent conflict highlighted this shift when China’s Ministry of Commerce accused the Responsible Business Alliance (RBA) of facilitating U.S. sanctions related to forced labor allegations in Xinjiang. Consequently, Beijing barred Chinese individuals and organizations from cooperating with the RBA. The alliance is a major corporate social responsibility body representing over 600 member companies that employ more than 21.5 million workers. Its Responsible Minerals Initiative manages the Responsible Minerals Assurance Process (RMAP), which remains the only supply chain due diligence scheme formally recognized by the European Union under its Conflict Minerals Regulation. Data from January 31, 2026, indicates that 71 out of 196 smelters and refiners for cobalt, tantalum, tin, and tungsten—approximately 36.2 percent—are based in mainland China.
These developments reflect a years-long strategy by Chinese institutions to understand and reshape international systems. By 2025, this trend became evident at an Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) forum in Paris, where Jiang Hui, chairman of the China Chamber of Commerce of Metals, Minerals & Chemicals Importers and Exporters (CCCMC), stated that some Chinese firms would reject foreign audits due to information security concerns. Instead, he advocated for Western participation in China’s own emerging governance system.
China’s efforts have already secured international traction. The London Metal Exchange has approved the CCCMC’s due-diligence guidelines for mineral supply chains, and multinational corporations including Apple, Tesla, and BMW have joined the CCCMC’s Responsible Cobalt Initiative. Furthermore, in 2025, a CCCMC draft mining standard introduced prohibitions on forced labor, while the Ministry of Commerce and the China Enterprise Confederation released new labor compliance guidelines for overseas operations.
In July 2026, China implemented a new Regulation on Outbound Investment, requiring Chinese investors to uphold workers' rights and comply with international practices. Notably, the regulation encourages China to actively participate in the creation of international investment rules. Beijing is also utilizing platforms like the International Forum on Sustainable Mineral Supply Chains in Xiamen to align governments, NGOs, and international organizations with its approach.
This expansion of Chinese regulatory influence coincides with a reduction in U.S. international labor programs, as the U.S. Department of Labor terminated hundreds of millions of dollars in initiatives addressing forced labor and child labor in 2025. While Western systems emphasize external assessment and risk identification, China’s model prioritizes state oversight, information security, and the role of domestic institutions. As both nations tie labor standards to national economic interests, the competition to define the rules of global supply chains continues to intensify.
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Ultimately, the matter of who writes the rules is less important than whether or not those rules actually improve conditions for workers worldwide. If competition pushes both sides to prove that their standards work, it may not be a bad thing for global workers.
