China’s exports of rare earth magnets to the United States rose more than seven times in June compared to May, following a Sino-US trade agreement.
This signals a significant recovery in the flow of essential minerals needed for electric vehicles and wind turbines.
Outbound shipments to the United States from the world’s largest producer of rare earth magnets surged to 353 metric tonnes in June, up 660% from May, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday.
Sino-US Deal
That came after pacts were reached in June to resolve issues around shipments of rare earth minerals and magnets to the United States, with chipmaker Nvidia’s plan to resume sales of its H20 AI chips to China as part of the talks.
China, which provides more than 90% of the global supply of rare earth magnets, decided in early April to add several rare earth items to its export restriction list in retaliation for U.S. tariffs.
The subsequent sharp falls in shipments in April and May, due to the lengthy times required to secure export licences, had rattled global suppliers, forcing some automakers outside China to halt partial production due to a shortage of rare earths.
In total, China exported 3,188 tonnes of rare earth permanent magnets last month, up 157.5% from 1,238 tonnes in May, although the June volume was still 38.1% lower than the corresponding month in 2022.
Shipments of magnets are likely to recover further in July as more exporters obtained licences in June, analysts said.
During the first half of 2025, exports of rare earth magnets fell 18.9% on the year to 22,319 tonnes.
(With inputs from Reuters)
