China's exports of rare earth magnets to the US skyrocket in June

China's exports of rare earth magnets to the United States in June soared by more than seven times from May, a sharp recovery in the flow of critical minerals key to electric vehicles and wind turbines after a Sino-US trade deal. 

Outbound shipments to the United States from the world's largest producer of rare earth magnets surged to 353 metric tons in June, up 660 per cent from May, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday. 

That came after pacts 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 per cent of global supply of rare earth magnets, decided in early April to add several rare earth items to its export restriction list in retaliation for US 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 shortage of rare earths. 

In total, China exported 3,188 tons of rare earth permanent magnets last month, up 157.5 per cent from 1,238 tons in May, although the June volume was still 38.1 per cent lower than the corresponding month in 2024. 

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 per cent on the year to 22,319 tons.