China delays export controls after Trump-Xi summit

Shares of US-listed rare earth miners rose on Thursday after China agreed to delay the imposition of more export controls as part of a deal reached between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Critical Metals up almost 7% in pre-marketing, USA Rare Earth increased by approximately 6% and Energy Fuels It increased by 3%. Multi-Purpose Materials NioCorp Developments, meanwhile, are both up around 3%.

These moves came shortly after Trump announced that the “rare earth issue has been resolved” following what he described as a “great meeting” with Chinese President Xi in South Korea.

As part of a broader deal between the world’s two largest economies that also includes Washington cutting fentanyl-related tariffs, China said its recently announced rare earth export controls will be delayed by a year.

Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he departed South Korea that his administration expects China’s decision to delay these rare earth export restrictions to be “routinely extended.”

However, China’s previous rare earth restrictions announced in early April will remain.

Beijing had threatened on October 9 to tighten export controls on rare earth elements and related technologies in a bid to prevent what it described as the “misuse” of rare earth minerals in the military and other sensitive sectors.

Rare earths refer to the 17 elements in the periodic table whose atomic structure gives them special magnetic properties. These elements are widely used in the automotive, robotics and defense industries.

China is the undisputed leader of the critical mineral supply chain; produces roughly 70% of the world’s rare earth supply and processes almost 90%; This means that it imports and processes these materials from other countries.

U.S. officials have previously warned that this dominance poses a strategic challenge amid a shift toward more sustainable energy sources.