US huffs and puffs amid China's global stranglehold on rare earths

Trump moves to expand mining, processing capacity as America stares down the barrel

- Bhagyashree Garekar

Almost six months into the trade war, the Trump administration is racing to wean America off its near total dependence on China for rare earth metals, essential to making everything from cars and fighter jets, to smartphones and data centers.

An F-35 fighter jet, for example, uses over 400kg of rare earth metals to enhance the performance of its weapons targeting systems, stealth abilities and other advanced on-board technologies.

Some submarines need more than 4,000kg of rare earths.

Such is the importance of these 17 lustrous and silvery-white elements, endowed with unique electronic, magnetic and optical properties, that they may determine who owns not only the modern economy, but also the weapons of modern warfare.

China's global dominance of rare earths has undermined US President Donald Trump's ability to impose economic sanctions on China. If Beijing cuts off supplies to the US, estimates are that America's stocks will empty in less than 90 days.

China's leverage will also impact Mr Trump's ability to get European allies to act on his Sept 13 proposal that Nato place 50 per cent to 100 per cent tariffs on China for its import of Russian oil.

There is a good chance that Mr Trump's call goes unheeded because Europe also imports large amounts of rare earths from China, which has the world's biggest rare earth deposits.

It has mined them for years, building enviable expertise.

In 2024, for instance, China produced 270,000 tonnes of these crucial metals versus only 40,823 tonnes in the US.

The Asian giant refines more than 85 per cent of the world's supply of rare earths, which it then turns into magnets, controlling 90 per cent of the world's supply. China also dominates the production of equipment and chemical reagents needed to refine rare earths.