This Rare-Earth Stock Is Soaring as U.S., China Negotiate. Why It's the Best Way to Play the Trade.
The stock rose Friday after jumping late Thursday following a Bloomberg report that the Defense Department might provide additional capital to boost production. MP stock traded as high as $30.78 and settled at $30.55, up 4.6%. Coming into Friday trading, MP shares were up almost 30% since mid-April, when U.S.-Chinese trade tensions escalated.
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Atlantic
an hour ago
- Atlantic
No More Student Visas? No Problem.
Just how mad is Beijing about President Donald Trump's decision to revoke student visas for Chinese nationals? Not as mad as it says, and not as mad as one might expect. Publicly, China's leadership will likely complain that Trump's action is yet another attempt to thwart the country's rise. But in reality, Beijing would probably just as soon keep its smartest kids at home. Late last month, the U.S. State Department announced that it would 'aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields,' and that it would 'enhance scrutiny' of the applications it received in the future. The new visa policy, a spokesperson said, is meant to prevent China from exploiting American universities and stealing intellectual property. A spokesperson for the foreign ministry quickly registered Beijing's objection to the new policy. But when Chinese leader Xi Jinping spoke with Trump by phone last week, either he didn't raise the new visa policy or his foreign ministry didn't regard his comments on the matter worth including in its official summary of the call, which suggests that the issue is not a top priority in Beijing's negotiations with Washington. One reason for this underwhelming response may be that re-shoring its university students serves Beijing's current agenda. China first opened to the world in the 1980s; in the decades that followed, securing a Western education for its elite helped the country bring in the technology and skills it needed to escape poverty. China was 'sending people out, learning from other places, finding the best quality wherever it was, and bringing that quality back to China,' Robin Lewis, a consultant for U.S.-China education programs and a former associate dean at Columbia University, told me. Now that period has given way to one of nationalism and self-reliance, which means promoting China's own companies, products, technologies—and universities. Rose Horowitch: Trump's campaign to scare off foreign students Xi has consistently stressed the importance of education in sustaining China's rise. His government has invested heavily in China's schools and lavished resources on science and technology programs, with some success. Some of China's top institutions, such as Tsinghua University in Beijing, have gained international recognition as serious competitors in scientific research. China would like to have its own Harvards, rather than sending its elite students to the United States, for political and cultural reasons as well as economic ones. Chinese authorities have long worried that the hundreds of thousands of students it exports to America will absorb undesirable ideas about democracy and civil liberties—and that they will access information about China that is suppressed at home, such as the story of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. In fact, many young Chinese who study in the United States seem to enjoy American freedoms and seek to stay rather than return to serve the motherland. Beijing has tried to deal with this in part by monitoring the activities of its students in the U.S. and attempting to hold them firmly to the party line, including by harassing the families back home of those who stray. Within China, authorities can more easily confine students inside the government's propaganda bubble, which in recent years has become more airtight. Domestic media seek to portray the U.S. as unsafe, especially for Asians, by highlighting incidents of racial discrimination, violence, and disorder. One story published last year by the state news agency Xinhua, under the headline 'Chinese Students' Dreams Turned Into Nightmares at U.S. Doorstep,' tells the harrowing tale of a Chinese student detained and deported at an airport and claims that others had suffered the same fate. China's top spy agency, the Ministry of State Security, warned Chinese students at universities abroad against being recruited as foreign agents, and told of one such unfortunate national who was discovered and punished. Even before Trump's announcement, this climate of mutual distrust had led to a drop-off in Chinese students enrolled in American universities. The number had reached an all-time high during the 2019–20 academic year, topping 372,000, according to the Institute of International Education. But that figure has fallen since—by a quarter, to 277,000, in the 2023–24 academic year. Now India, with more than 331,000 enrolled, sends more students to American institutions than China does. The Trump administration appears to believe that curtailing Chinese access to American technology, money, and, in this case, education will give the U.S. the edge over its closest competitor. In some areas, this might work: Restricting the export of advanced U.S. semiconductor technology to China seems to have helped hold Beijing's chip industry back. So why not do the same with higher education? A case can be made that keeping Chinese students out of some of the world's top research institutions will hold back their skills acquisition and, with it, the country's progress. Adam Serwer: Trump is wearing America down In practice, though, the effect of this policy could be hard to gauge. The engineers behind the Chinese AI firm DeepSeek, which wowed Silicon Valley by developing a competitive chatbot on the cheap, were mainly locally trained. And the skills that Chinese students can't find at home they can seek in any number of places. There may be only so many Harvards, but Chinese students can receive a good education—and a warmer reception—in countries other than the United States. Universities in Japan and Hong Kong are already trying to capitalize on Trump's harassment of international students to lure them. The idea that any American policy can effectively dampen Chinese ambition may be far-fetched. 'People wake up in the morning and it's all about education here. There is nothing more important,' James McGregor, the chair for China at the consulting firm APCO, told me. 'You're going to stop Chinese people from learning the top skills in the world? No. They'll just deploy them somewhere else.' For now, the Trump team can't seem to decide whether it wants to get tough on China or make deals with China, and the new student-visa policy reflects this confusion. 'Chinese students are coming. No problem,' Trump said in a briefing after his call with Xi. 'It's our honor to have them, frankly.' China's leadership surely knows that many Chinese families still aspire to send their young-adult children to American universities. But Beijing is much more single-minded than Washington about the future of relations between the two countries: Xi appears to see Washington as the primary impediment to China's rise, and ties to the U.S. as a vulnerability best eliminated. From that viewpoint, relying on Harvard to train China's most promising students is a national-security risk. That means that Trump may be doing Xi a favor.
Business Insider
2 hours ago
- Business Insider
Rare earth minerals are the biggest card China can play in its negotiations with Trump
China has a significant card to play in its trade negotiations with the US, which could not only put the Trump administration in a bind but also impact a wide range of consumer goods. Rare earth minerals, namely scandium, yttrium, and 15 types of lanthanides, usually sit unnoticed at the bottom of the periodic table. But experts in rare earths have told Business Insider that a shortage of these minerals — which mainly come from China — could induce a shortage in everything from aircraft parts to TV remotes. "It's not industry agnostic because rare earths are used in everything from TVs and laptops and phones to cancer treatments and MRI scanners to automotives to defense," said Gracelin Baskaran, director of the Critical Minerals Security Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "Especially as a bedrock to the automotive industry, it is really critical because our automotive manufacturing industry was getting to a point where it had to halt operations and close manufacturing plants without access to these rare earths," Baskaran added. The importance of critical minerals came into focus when China cut off its supply to the US after Trump imposed tariffs, as high as 245% for some goods, on the manufacturing hub in a trade war that escalated between February and May. The two countries have since de-escalated tensions through trade talks after Trump agreed to lower duties on China to 30% for 90 days starting from May 14. After the latest trade talks in London in mid-June, China has agreed to reopen export channels of its critical minerals to the US — at least for now. "China built up its industry in a cheap and not necessarily ecologically refined manner, and the US said, 'That's very inexpensive, so we do not need to have this kind of industry in our country,'" Laura Lewis, professor of chemical engineering at the Northwestern University College of Engineering, saud. "And that was the case for many years." Bilateral relations with China remain fragile According to data from the 2024 US Geological Survey, 70% of critical mineral imports to the US came from China, followed by 13% from Malaysia. China also processes nearly 90% of the world's rare earth minerals, according to the International Energy Agency. Though the Chinese Embassy in Washington, DC, did not directly confirm how long rare earth licenses will remain issued to US manufacturers, a spokesperson told BI in a statement that "China has reviewed and approved a certain number of export license applications for rare-earth-related items." "Rare-earth-related items have dual-use attributes, with both military and civilian purposes, imposing export controls on such items is in line with international practices," the spokesperson added. Drew DeLong, lead in geopolitical dynamics practice at Kearney, a global strategy and management consulting firm, told BI that manufacturers are going to stockpile as much rare earth material as possible during the brief reprieve in US-China relations, in anticipation of more supply chain disruptions. DeLong said that by August, when the tariff suspension expires, the US-China relation would reach a critical decision point where it "must either coalesce or collapse." "Markets now wait to see whether Beijing actually resumes outbound shipments, and whether Washington delivers on its part of the rollback, " DeLong added. "There already appears to be hedging on trade tensions flaring up again." America may need to work with what it has The US once had a single operating rare earth mine in Mountain Pass, California, but it went bankrupt in 2015. Molycorp, its operator, filed for bankruptcy protection due to slumping rare earth prices and ballooning costs. Meanwhile, China has spent decades building its capacity to process rare earths. Other countries, like Japan, have diversified where they get their rare earth metals to avoid relying on China. Lewis, of Northwestern University, told BI that the US not only has a long way to go, but it may simply lack certain types of metals, even if it could extract others. Lewis said that the US lacks a category of heavy rare earths necessary for magnets to endure hot environments like motors. "We're going to have to work with our allies and nature to get what we need," said Lewis, "Because I cannot possibly imagine that the investment it would take to get our rare minerals from asteroids is going to be less than what we can already achieve on earth through recycling and a thoughtful use of resources." "The philosophy in Silicon Valley is just throw enough time and money at it, and you'll get it and fast, but nothing that we can do to get the rare earth industry healthy is going to happen fast," Lewis added. "Nature's smarter than we are."
Business Wire
2 hours ago
- Business Wire
When Golden Sunflower Meets Bauhinia: HONGQI Showcases Oriental Luxury at 2025 International Automotive and Supply Chain Expo(Hong Kong)
CHANGCHUN, China--(BUSINESS WIRE)--From June 12 to 15, FAW HONGQI unveiled its luxury vehicle lineup at the 2025 International Automotive and Supply Chain Expo(Hong Kong), showcasing its unique "Oriental Luxury" concept to the world. During the expo, HONGQI held the "Glory in Hong Kong, Shaping the Future Together" Golden Sunflower Exclusive Appreciation Event, which forged profound connections between HONGQI and local customers. With its outstanding products and rich brand heritage, HONGQI continues to expand the global influence of Chinese luxury brands. Qiu Xiandong, Chairman of China FAW Group Co., Ltd. attended the opening ceremony of the 2025 International Automotive and Supply Chain Expo(Hong Kong) and the launch ceremony of the China Automotive and Supply Chain Enterprises Overseas Alliance, and delivered a speech. He stated that FAW Group aims to strengthen cooperation in industry, ecology, finance, and technological innovation, and is willing to partner with Hong Kong in creating a new legend. The HONGQI Golden Sunflower series vehicles, representing the pinnacle of Chinese automotive craftsmanship—GUOYAO, GUOLI, GUOYA, and GUOYUE—profoundly demonstrate HONGQI's mastery of design aesthetics, safety standards, and manufacturing quality. These vehicles became the center of attention at the event. The entire Golden Sunflower series of models demonstrates remarkable market appeal and injects strong momentum into HONGQI's successful entry into Hong Kong. During the Golden Sunflower Exclusive Appreciation Event, Liu Changqing, Assistant President of China FAW Group Co., Ltd. and Vice President of HONGQI Brand Operation Committee presented a customized commemorative gift to Wong Yan Kwong, the Chairman of KONSTAR Group and Hong Kong HONGQI Enthusiasts Association. Qiu Xiandong, Chairman of China FAW Group Co., Ltd. , presented a top-tier luxury sedan—GUOLI, to Lo Man Tuen, the Chairman of the Wing Li Group (International) Limited. At the 2025 International Automotive and Supply Chain Expo(Hong Kong), HONGQI unveiled a range of classic and modern models. The unveiling of precious models such as the HONGQI CA770, the right-hand-drive version of the CA770, and the CA72 carried the deep affection and cherished memories of several generations for China's high-end automotive industry. The three models — H9, HQ9, and E-HS9 —showcased HONGQI's dedication to product excellence and technology development. Additionally, the HONGQI "TianNian NO.1" flying car became a major highlight of the auto show with its forward-looking technological concepts and innovative design. In the next five years, HONGQI will launch over 20 new models globally, including new energy vehicles, fuel-efficient models, and Golden Sunflower series models. HONGQI is committed to delivering more high-quality vehicles that earn the trust of global consumers—driving Chinese automotive brands to new heights in the world.
