Japanese government data showed on Monday that the country's rare earths imports from China shrank further in November, indicating a worsening situation caused by China's restriction on shipments of the minerals since September.

Japanese imports of rare earths from China plunged to 663 tons in November, halving the October figure, and over a 75-percent decrease from November 2009.

In an effort to reduce reliance on imports from China, Japan is trying to secure stable supplies from Australia in order to ease worries of Japanese electronics manufacturers who largely use the mineral in their products.

China's business press carried the story above on Tuesday. China.org.cn has not checked the stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.