How the US-China trade deal impacts rare earth stocks

Core Viewpoint - The investment landscape for rare earth stocks is shifting due to easing trade tensions between the US and China, with potential concessions from China being necessary for the US to develop its own rare earth industry [1][5]. Industry Overview - Approximately 70% of rare earth mining and 90% of processing still occurs in China, highlighting the challenges for US companies to compete domestically [4]. - The US government is expected to play a role in supporting domestic rare earth companies, potentially through financial backing or partnerships with non-Chinese firms [7][8]. Investment Case - US companies focusing solely on domestic production may require a minimum of two to three years to ramp up operations, while partnerships with Southeast Asian countries could expedite this timeline to one to two years [9][10][11]. - The risk remains that China could flood the market and drive prices down, which could undermine US efforts unless there is a solid agreement in place to prevent this [12][13]. Company Insights - US Rare Earth is highlighted as a promising investment due to its recent acquisition of a UK company and the upcoming launch of a magnet factory in Oklahoma, which is expected to begin production soon [16][17].