Trump measures spark rare earth investment surge

SHARES in rare earth mining companies have surged to record levels as investors respond enthusiastically to the White House’s efforts to reduce American dependence on Chinese supplies of critical minerals, said the Financial Times on Monday.US-listed MP Materials, USA Rare Earth and Australia’s Lynas have all seen their stock prices more than double this year amid Trump administration initiatives supporting domestic production of materials essential for smartphones, electric vehicles and military hardware, the newspaper said.Washington has bought stakes in Canadian miners Lithium Americas and Trilogy Metals recently, causing their valuations to double and triple respectively. The administration plans to establish a strategic mineral reserve and implement price floor mechanisms whilst accelerating mine approvals through relaxed environmental regulations.Beijing responded this month by tightening export controls, requiring foreign firms to obtain approval for exporting magnets containing any quantity of Chinese rare earths. China also announced plans to restrict exports of holmium, erbium, thulium, europium and ytterbium.Several companies have capitalised on buoyant conditions to raise capital, including Standard Lithium securing $130m and Critical Metals obtaining $50m last week.However, some analysts caution against excessive optimism. “There aren’t many publicly traded western companies to invest in,” said Timothy Puko, director of commodities at Eurasia Group. “Very few targets and a whole lot of shooters in the market right now,” he added.Gareth Hatch, founder of Strategic Materials Advisory, said various junior mining companies were “milking the situation” with weak announcements. “Investors must do their homework,” he added.The US government paid $400m for a 15% stake in MP Materials in July, part of a broader $1bn procurement programme ensuring access to minerals vital for defence and electronics manufacturing.The post Trump measures spark rare earth investment surge appeared first on Miningmx.Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei Mining.com