AFP: China has said it has toughened rare earth export rules to allow only producers that meet environmental protection laws and international standards to ship the precious elements out of the country. The rules are Beijing’s latest move to rein in rare earths exports, amid complaints from foreign high-tech producers that the country is restricting shipments of the elements, used in everything from iPods to cars. China has a near-global monopoly in rare earths — last year, it produced 97 percent…