US Weighs Years of Effort to Break China's Rare-Earth Stranglehold
In a bid to reduce America's dependence on Chinese rare-earth metals, President Trump has launched an ambitious project that aims to shake off the East Asian giant's chokehold on the global supply chain. The latest breakthrough in this effort came last week when US Treasury Secretary Scot Bessent returned from South Carolina brandishing a small piece of metal - the first rare-earth magnet produced in the US in over 25 years.
This achievement is seen as a major milestone in the Trump administration's efforts to break China's dominance in processing and manufacturing these critical materials, essential for semiconductors, batteries, armaments, and other high-tech applications. By leveraging tariffs, economic tools, and direct negotiations with key partners like Australia, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Japan, the US aims to reinvigorate its domestic industry and create a more diversified supply chain.
However, experts warn that this is just the beginning of a long and challenging journey. The US still relies heavily on China for these critical materials, importing 80% of what it needs in 2024, according to the US Geological Survey. Chinese companies control over 99% of the world's refinement capacity for certain rare-earth minerals like dysprosium and samarium.
"It's not that there's a shortage per se," says Adam Webb, head of energy raw materials at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. "It's just that China can limit how much is exported." Obtaining export licenses from China can be a lengthy and difficult process, making it tough for the US to quickly build up its domestic production.
In response, the Trump administration has set its sights on other key countries like Greenland, Brazil, Canada, and even Ukraine. The Pentagon has become a major shareholder in MP Materials, which operates the largest rare-earth mine in California, with plans to build new "mine-to-magnet" facilities. However, experts caution that it will take years for these efforts to bear fruit.
"The US cannot be self-reliant in the short term," Webb notes. "It takes time to bring a mine online and build refining capacity." Even with direct investments and stakes in critical mineral companies, the US still faces significant hurdles in resetting its dependence on Chinese production of rare-earth metals.
A sovereign wealth fund could potentially speed up production, but this is just one of several options under consideration. For now, it appears that the US has entered a scramble to assemble trading alliances around rare earths - an effort that is accelerating by the day. While progress has been made, the road ahead will be long and arduous, with many challenges still awaiting the US in its quest to break China's grip on this critical sector.
In a bid to reduce America's dependence on Chinese rare-earth metals, President Trump has launched an ambitious project that aims to shake off the East Asian giant's chokehold on the global supply chain. The latest breakthrough in this effort came last week when US Treasury Secretary Scot Bessent returned from South Carolina brandishing a small piece of metal - the first rare-earth magnet produced in the US in over 25 years.
This achievement is seen as a major milestone in the Trump administration's efforts to break China's dominance in processing and manufacturing these critical materials, essential for semiconductors, batteries, armaments, and other high-tech applications. By leveraging tariffs, economic tools, and direct negotiations with key partners like Australia, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Japan, the US aims to reinvigorate its domestic industry and create a more diversified supply chain.
However, experts warn that this is just the beginning of a long and challenging journey. The US still relies heavily on China for these critical materials, importing 80% of what it needs in 2024, according to the US Geological Survey. Chinese companies control over 99% of the world's refinement capacity for certain rare-earth minerals like dysprosium and samarium.
"It's not that there's a shortage per se," says Adam Webb, head of energy raw materials at Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. "It's just that China can limit how much is exported." Obtaining export licenses from China can be a lengthy and difficult process, making it tough for the US to quickly build up its domestic production.
In response, the Trump administration has set its sights on other key countries like Greenland, Brazil, Canada, and even Ukraine. The Pentagon has become a major shareholder in MP Materials, which operates the largest rare-earth mine in California, with plans to build new "mine-to-magnet" facilities. However, experts caution that it will take years for these efforts to bear fruit.
"The US cannot be self-reliant in the short term," Webb notes. "It takes time to bring a mine online and build refining capacity." Even with direct investments and stakes in critical mineral companies, the US still faces significant hurdles in resetting its dependence on Chinese production of rare-earth metals.
A sovereign wealth fund could potentially speed up production, but this is just one of several options under consideration. For now, it appears that the US has entered a scramble to assemble trading alliances around rare earths - an effort that is accelerating by the day. While progress has been made, the road ahead will be long and arduous, with many challenges still awaiting the US in its quest to break China's grip on this critical sector.
I'm not surprised the US is taking this big step but it's gonna take a looong time 
for them to actually change their game 
. 80% of their rare-earth imports come from China? That's crazy! 
They need to get creative and work with other countries like Australia, Japan, and Canada more seriously 
. The Trump admin is taking the right step by investing in MP Materials and trying to build a "mine-to-magnet" facility 
, but it's gonna be tough to overcome China's dominance 
. A sovereign wealth fund could help speed things up, but it's just one piece of the puzzle 
. We need more transparency and accountability from governments on this issue 
️. The world needs a more diverse supply chain, pronto! 
this is like such a huge milestone for amerca's tech industry and economy, i'm lowkey rooting for the trump administration to make this happen 
meanwhile, it's clear that china's been dominating the game for way too long, so fingers crossed we see some real progress on this front soon 
still seems like china's got them in a chokehold for a reason lol. i mean, 80% of us imports is crazy. but at the same time, it's awesome that we're finally taking steps to diversify our supply chain. building those "mine-to-magnet" facilities is a good start 
. gotta be patient though - we all know china can be super slow with export licenses and whatnot 
. wonder if us investors are gonna pony up for those sovereign wealth funds...
so yeah trump launched dis project & it's kinda cool that we finally got 1 piece made in the us after like 25 yrs, thats a major milestone tho. but lets be real, china still controls like 99% of the world's refining capacity for certain minerals lol. and dont even get me started on how hard its 2 get export licenses from china 
.
That's kinda crazy! I mean we need this stuff for all sorts of high-tech stuff, so it's about time we start breaking our dependence on China. I'm excited to see what other countries are gonna get involved and help us out... Greenland, Brazil, Canada... who knew?! 
, this is amazing news!!! The US finally taking steps towards breaking China's hold on rare earths, it's about time 
! We need to take control of our own industry and create a more diverse supply chain, it's the only way forward 
.
️. It's about time we start thinking outside the box and exploring new opportunities 
. We got this!