Category: Magnets and Magnetism

Inside China’s Six-Decade Campaign to Dominate Rare Earths

From Deng Xiaoping to Xi Jinping, generations of Communist Party bosses and military leaders invested in a strategic but heavily polluting industry.
Meet a U.S. Start-Up Trying to Break China’s Rare-Earth Monopoly

Companies like Phoenix Tailings, which recently began producing metal in New Hampshire, are using new processing methods to compete with Chinese suppliers.
How U.S. Defense Industry Dodged a Rare-Earth Shortage After China’s Curbs

America’s ability to make precision-guided missiles was threatened during Trump’s tariff war. But experienced players have rescued the supply chain, for now.
Crayola Magnetic Blocks Are Recalled Over Choking Hazard Concerns

Magnets in the toy, pip-Cubes, can fall out of the blocks and be swallowed by children, causing injury or death, federal regulators warned.
An Auto Holy Grail: Motors That Don’t Rely on Chinese Rare Earths

Weary of being captive to geopolitics, car companies are looking for ways to replace powerful rare-earth magnets in electric motors.
In China Truce on Tariffs and Rare Earths, National Security Controls Are Bargaining Chip

Some analysts say Beijing won a major victory in its trade talks: Getting the U.S. to withdraw a national security measure that previously was not under discussion.
China’s Pause on Rare Earth Controls: What to Know

China has suspended export controls announced this month, but was conspicuously silent about rules imposed earlier, which are snarling global supply chains.
Step by Step, How China Seized Control of Critical Minerals

China’s far-reaching rules already affect manufacturers of semiconductors, cars and many other products. They will soon become much broader.
China’s Control of Rare Earths Has U.S. Scrambling to Find Alternatives

The Trump administration is trying an array of unconventional measures to shore up U.S. rare earths supplies. It remains uncertain whether the strategy will work.
Cars to Fighter Jets: China’s New Export Curbs May Level a Heavy Blow Worldwide

Broad restrictions could cause supply interruptions for arms makers, as well as manufacturers in the semiconductor, automotive and other sectors.
The Race Is on to Make Rare Earth Magnets Outside China

After Beijing exerted its power over the valuable magnets as leverage, other countries started to add production, but only incrementally. And China is far ahead.
How China Is Weathering the Trade War With Trump

Tariffs triggered a plunge in China’s exports to the United States, but its global trade surplus is larger because sales to other regions are surging.