Apple to buy rare earths from Pentagon-backed US producer MP
(BLOOMBERG)Apple Inc. has struck a $500 million deal to buy rare-earth minerals from MP Materials Corp., the US producer that just last week secured backing from the Pentagon.The two companies will build a factory in Texas, with neodymium magnet manufacturing lines tailored for Apple products, the iPhone maker said Tuesday in a statement. Apple said the spending on rare-earth minerals is part of its earlier pledge to invest more than $500 billion in the US over the next four years.Shares of MP Materials gained 11% in pre-market trading. Apple's stock was little changed. Fox News reported some details on the supply deal earlier on Tuesday.The world's dependence on China for rare-earth permanent magnets that are essential for consumer tech, cars, wind turbines and fighter aircrafts, has become a flashpoint in the Asian nation's trade war with the US.After the Trump administration imposed 145% tariffs on China, Beijing shut down exports of the critical component. MP Materials operates the sole US rare-earth mine at Mountain Pass in California.The increased production will support dozens of new manufacturing and R&D jobs, Apple said.The two companies will also work together to establish a rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, and develop novel magnet materials and innovative processing technologies to enhance magnet performance, according to the statement. That facility will allow MP Materials to take in recycled rare earth feedstock and use it in Apple products."Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States,' said Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook in the statement.Signs have emerged in recent weeks that the US and China are beginning to deliver on promises made in trade talks held in Geneva and London in the past two months. China agreed to resume shipments of rare earths - with exports surging in June - while the Trump administration has reversed some restrictions on technology exports to China, including some semiconductors from Nvidia Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc.
The Pentagon took a $400 million stake in MP last week to secure supplies of magnets critical for military and other applications. The deal came with $1 billion in financing from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to fund a major new plant.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Sharjah 24
4 hours ago
- Sharjah 24
Nvidia says it will resume sales of 'H20' AI chips to China
The California-based company produces some of the world's most advanced semiconductors but cannot ship its most cutting-edge chips to China due to concerns that Beijing could use them to enhance military capabilities. Nvidia developed the H20 -- a less powerful version of its AI processing units -- specifically for export to China. However, that plan stalled when the Trump administration tightened export licensing requirements in April. "The US government has assured Nvidia that licenses will be granted, and Nvidia hopes to start deliveries soon," the company said in a statement Tuesday, adding it was "filing applications to sell the Nvidia H20 GPU again." CEO Jensen Huang, wearing his trademark black leather jacket, told reporters in a video published by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV: "I'm looking forward to shipping H20s very soon, and so I'm very happy with that very, very good news." Defending the policy change, Trump's AI Czar David Sacks told CNBC the H20 was a "deprecated chip" that is "not anywhere close to the state of the art." He said the reversal on the H20 came because Nvidia's Chinese rival Huawei was making "huge strides" and could potentially threaten Nvidia's market dominance. China represents a crucial market for Nvidia, but recent US export restrictions have intensified competition from local players like homegrown champion Huawei. "We don't want to sell China our latest greatest technology, but I do think we at least want to make it a little bit difficult for Huawei," Sacks said. Sacks also said that the decision was linked to ongoing trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing that are locked in a bitter trade feud. Beijing has criticized Washington's curbs as unfair and designed to hinder its development. 'Abrupt shifts' Zhang Guobin, founder of Chinese specialist website said the resumption would "bring substantial revenue growth, making up for losses caused by the previous ban." It would also ease trade friction impacts on the global semiconductor supply chain, he told AFP. However, he noted Chinese firms would remain focused on domestic chip development, adding that "the Trump administration has been prone to abrupt policy shifts, making it difficult to gauge how long such an opening might endure." Huang will attend a major supply chain gathering Wednesday, according to event organizers, his third trip to China this year, CCTV reported. During an April visit to Beijing, Huang told Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng he "looked favorably upon the potential of the Chinese economy" and was "willing to continue to plow deeply into the Chinese market and play a positive role in promoting US-China trade cooperation," state news agency Xinhua reported. The tightened US export curbs come as China's economy wavers, with domestic consumers reluctant to spend and a prolonged property sector crisis weighing on growth. President Xi Jinping has called for greater self-reliance amid increasing external uncertainty. The Financial Times reported in May that Nvidia was planning to build a research and development center in Shanghai, though neither Nvidia nor city authorities confirmed the project to AFP. China's economy grew 5.2 percent in the second quarter, official data showed Tuesday, as analysts had predicted strong exports despite trade war pressures.
Gulf Today
8 hours ago
- Gulf Today
Trump asked Zelenskiy if Ukraine could hit Moscow
US President Donald Trump has privately encouraged Ukraine to step up deep strikes on Russian territory, even asking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy whether he could strike Moscow if the US provided long-range weapons, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people briefed on the discussions. The newspaper, citing two people familiar with the conversation between Trump and Zelenskiy, said the US president had asked his Ukrainian counterpart whether he could hit military targets deep inside Russia if he provided weapons capable of doing so. The White House did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reuters could not verify the report. The Kremlin warned Tuesday that US President Donald Trump's pledge of more weapons for Kyiv and threat of sanctions targeting Russian trading partners could embolden Ukraine and further delay already stalled peace efforts. Trump a day earlier gave Russia 50 days to strike a peace deal with Ukraine, voicing fresh frustration with Moscow as he laid out an arrangement with NATO to supply Kyiv with new military aid sponsored by the alliance's members. The Republican forced Moscow and Kyiv to open peace talks to end the conflict, now in its fourth year, but Russia has rejected calls for a ceasefire and launched a record number of drones and missiles at Ukraine in recent months. Moscow said it needed more time to respond fully to Trump's statement, but hinted it did not appear conducive to successful negotiations. "It seems that such a decision made in Washington and in NATO countries and directly in Brussels will be perceived by Kyiv not as a signal for peace but for the continuation of the war," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "President Trump's statement is very serious. We certainly need time to analyse what was said in Washington," he told reporters in Moscow's first reaction to the comments. Trump warned that if no deal was concluded, he would slap severe tariffs on Russia's remaining trade partners in a bid to impede Moscow's ability to finance its military offensive. Pumped up by huge state spending on soldiers and weapons, as well as by redirecting vital energy exports to the likes of China and India, Russia's economy has so far defied Western hopes sanctions would push it into a deep recession. Agencies
Al Etihad
10 hours ago
- Al Etihad
Apple to buy rare earths from Pentagon-backed US producer MP
15 July 2025 18:41 (BLOOMBERG)Apple Inc. has struck a $500 million deal to buy rare-earth minerals from MP Materials Corp., the US producer that just last week secured backing from the two companies will build a factory in Texas, with neodymium magnet manufacturing lines tailored for Apple products, the iPhone maker said Tuesday in a statement. Apple said the spending on rare-earth minerals is part of its earlier pledge to invest more than $500 billion in the US over the next four of MP Materials gained 11% in pre-market trading. Apple's stock was little changed. Fox News reported some details on the supply deal earlier on world's dependence on China for rare-earth permanent magnets that are essential for consumer tech, cars, wind turbines and fighter aircrafts, has become a flashpoint in the Asian nation's trade war with the the Trump administration imposed 145% tariffs on China, Beijing shut down exports of the critical component. MP Materials operates the sole US rare-earth mine at Mountain Pass in increased production will support dozens of new manufacturing and R&D jobs, Apple two companies will also work together to establish a rare earth recycling line in Mountain Pass, California, and develop novel magnet materials and innovative processing technologies to enhance magnet performance, according to the statement. That facility will allow MP Materials to take in recycled rare earth feedstock and use it in Apple products."Rare earth materials are essential for making advanced technology, and this partnership will help strengthen the supply of these vital materials here in the United States,' said Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook in the have emerged in recent weeks that the US and China are beginning to deliver on promises made in trade talks held in Geneva and London in the past two months. China agreed to resume shipments of rare earths - with exports surging in June - while the Trump administration has reversed some restrictions on technology exports to China, including some semiconductors from Nvidia Corp. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. The Pentagon took a $400 million stake in MP last week to secure supplies of magnets critical for military and other applications. The deal came with $1 billion in financing from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to fund a major new plant.
