US to push for quicker action in reducing reliance on China for rare earths

[WASHINGTON] US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will urge Group of Seven nations and others to step up their efforts to reduce reliance on critical minerals from China when he hosts a dozen top finance officials on Monday (Jan 12), a senior US official said.

The meeting will include finance ministers or Cabinet ministers from the G7 advanced economies, the European Union, Australia, India, South Korea and Mexico, said the official who was not authorised to speak publicly.

Together, the grouping accounts for 60 per cent of global demand for critical minerals.

“Urgency is the theme of the day. It’s a very big undertaking. There’s a lot of different angles, a lot of different countries involved and we really just need to move faster,” the official said.

Bessent on Friday told Reuters that he had been pressing for a separate meeting on the issue since a G7 leaders summit in Canada in June, where he delivered a rare earths presentation to gathered heads of state from the US, Britain, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and the European Union.

Leaders agreed to an action plan at the summit to secure their supply chains and boost their economies, but Bessent has grown frustrated about the lack of urgency demonstrated by attendees, the official said.

Aside from Japan, which took action after China abruptly cut off its critical minerals supplies in 2010, G7 members remain heavily dependent on critical minerals from China, which has threatened to impose strict export controls.

China dominates the critical minerals supply chain, refining between 47 per cent and 87 per cent of copper, lithium, cobalt, graphite and rare earths, according to the International Energy Agency. These minerals are used in defence technologies, semiconductors, renewable energy components, batteries and refining processes.

The US is expected to issue a statement after the meeting, but no specific joint action is likely, the official added.

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“The United States is in the posture of calling everyone together, showing leadership, sharing what we have in mind going forward,” said the official. “We’re ready to move with those who feel a similar level of urgency ... and others can join as they come to the realisation of how serious this is.”

The official gave no details on what further steps were planned by the Trump administration, which is pushing forward to boost domestic production and reduce reliance on China through agreements with Australia, Ukraine and other producers.

The US signed an agreement with Australia in October aimed at countering China’s dominance in critical minerals that includes an US$8.5 billion project pipeline. The deal leverages Australia’s proposed strategic reserve, which will supply metals like rare earths and lithium that are vulnerable to disruption.

The official said there had been progress, but more work was needed. “It’s not solved,” they added.

Canberra has said it has subsequently received interest from Europe, Japan, South Korea and Singapore.

Monday’s meeting comes days after reports that China had begun restricting exports to Japanese companies of rare earths and powerful magnets containing them, as well as banning exports of dual-use items to the Japanese military.

The meeting was planned well before that action, US officials said. China was still living up to its commitments to purchase US soybeans and ship critical minerals to US firms. REUTERS