News about rare earths • China

"But China has not budged on specialized rare earths, including samarium, which are needed for military applications and are outside the fast-track agreed in London, the two people said." www.reuters.com/world/china/us-china-trade-truce-leaves-military-use-rare-earth-issue-unresolved-sources-say-2025-06-15/

“China doesn’t just mine rare earths — it refines nearly 100% of the global heavy REE output and the majority of light ones (about 90%). That means even if the U.S., Australia, or other countries dig them up, they typically send them to China…” qz.com/rare-earth-minerals-china-us-trade-war?utm_source=Quartz_Daily_Brief_Europe_Africa&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2025-06-16

China’s exports of rare earth products — including powerful magnets now at the heart of tensions with the US — slumped to a fresh five-year low in May as Beijing’s export curbs choked flows Yes, there really was no clear "deal" made in London.. www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-18/china-s-rare-earth-exports-slump-in-may-as-magnet-sales-curbed

Western nations will take years to develop enough rare earth processing capacity to limit China’s dominance over the critical ingredients, according to industry veteran and former Molycorp boss Mark Smith www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-17/rare-earth-boss-sees-long-hard-process-to-loosen-china-s-grip?utm_source=website&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=twitter?sref=gFy8Zov9