Shipments, prices and dates to watch
Published 13 October 2026
On September 4, 2026, Reuters reported that some Chinese rare earth suppliers were declining to ship to the U.S. for fear of repercussions from Beijing, that exports to the U.S. of yttrium were still only about half 2024 levels, and that some U.S. companies had been waiting more than six months for mineral licences. re139, Reuters, China rare earth firms halt some US shipments over geopolitical worries, sources say
On September 14, 2026, Neo Performance Materials announced that its European permanent magnet manufacturing facility is in commercial production and shipping volumes of rare earth sintered magnets to a Tier 1 electric vehicle traction motor customer. The company said the milestone marks its transition "from development and sampling, through full automotive qualification and into commercial production for its initial magnet programs." Neo said it had been awarded multiple magnet programs from three Tier 1 motor manufacturers, and that two to three customer programs are expected to enter commercial production before the end of 2026. Phase 1A of the European facility provides nameplate capacity of approximately 2,000 metric tonnes per year, and Phase 1B, currently being designed, is expected to expand nameplate capacity to approximately 5,000 metric tonnes per year. The release says Neo's longer-term magnet roadmap targets 20,000 metric tonnes of annual production through continued global expansion, which the Company estimates could represent 10% to 15% of the projected rare earth permanent magnet market outside China. re116, Neo Performance Materials, European magnet facility in commercial production, September 2026
On September 18, 2026, the Dallas Business Journal reported under the headline "MP Materials delivers first magnets to General Motors from Fort Worth factory." The article says MP Materials formed a deal with General Motors in 2021 to provide rare earth magnets that would go into the motors of GM's electric vehicles. re128, Dallas Business Journal, Inside MP Materials' Fort Worth rare earth magnet factory
Shanghai Metals Market reported on September 20, 2026, citing customs data, that China's rare earth permanent magnet exports in August 2026 were 5,010 mt, down 6% month on month and down 18% year on year. Cumulative rare earth permanent magnet exports from January to August 2026 were 41,890 mt, up 23% compared to the same period last year. re121, Shanghai Metals Market, China's rare earth magnet exports in August 2026
Bloomberg reported that shipments of magnets to the US dropped 21% in August to 512 tons from the month before, according to Chinese customs data, ahead of a meeting between the leaders of the two countries. Chris Kennedy, lead for economic statecraft at Bloomberg Economics, said in a note: "Washington needs stability with Beijing to keep these critical inputs moving." He added: "Yet periods of calm that restore access to lower-cost Chinese material weaken the urgency for the US to break its dependence on China." Bloomberg wrote that China hopes to offer more licenses for rare earth exports as a bargaining chip in talks, people familiar with the matter said. re122, Yahoo Finance, China Rare-Earth Magnet Exports to US Drop Before Xi-Trump Meet
Rawmaterials.net reported on September 21, 2026 that, according to customs data, only 802 kilograms of dysprosium were shipped overseas in August, split almost evenly between South Korea and Portugal, compared with 11,292 kilograms in July, all of which went to South Korea. Terbium exports, by contrast, rose by 71 percent to 2,251 kilograms, with South Korea again the largest destination, receiving 2,000 kilograms. The site added that dysprosium and terbium are relatively small markets, meaning that individual larger shipments can have a substantial impact on monthly export statistics. re123, Rawmaterials.net, China's Dysprosium Exports Fall Sharply as Terbium Shipments Rise
On September 23, 2026, Reuters reported that U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng were meeting for a second time that week to clear up "unfinished business" ahead of the summit between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping at the White House on Thursday. Bessent said, "We have some unfinished business from Sunday," referring to a previous meeting meant to tee up agreements for the two leaders to consider. He told reporters, as he entered World Bank headquarters in Washington, that the two countries wanted strategic stability, but that it had to be based on reciprocity and fairness. He did not answer questions about whether the two economies would agree to extend a trade truce that expires on November 10. A U.S. Treasury official said the meeting would involve only Bessent and He, to further prepare for the summit. Reuters said Bessent, He and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer had met in New York on Sunday to try to line up possible trade and artificial intelligence agreements for the two leaders to consider. Bessent called those talks "successful" and said the two sides had agreed to launch a communications "hotline" for notifying each other about AI safety incidents. re145, Reuters, US Treasury's Bessent, China's He to meet on 'unfinished business' before Trump-Xi summit
The Sunday meeting left unresolved the fate of a nearly year-long trade truce between Washington and Beijing, which expires on November 10, the story said. According to the story, the truce had dramatically lowered bilateral tariff rates that had quickly escalated to triple digits after tit-for-tat retaliation over Trump's tariff hikes the year before. China had also agreed to restore the flow of rare earth magnets and other critical minerals that it had severely restricted. Greer told Bloomberg TV on Monday that discussions about extending the trade truce would continue because there was time, and said "my expectation is we'll continue talking and I think both sides want it." Greer added that the U.S. needed to keep pressure on China to ensure compliance on its critical minerals agreements, and U.S. officials the week before had told reporters that China's delivery of rare earths "has not been up to par." On Sunday the two sides also discussed topics Trump and Xi had raised at a May meeting in Beijing, including lowering mutual tariffs on some non-strategic goods and Chinese purchases of Boeing aircraft and agricultural goods. Greer said the two sides agreed to "operationalize" a process agreed in May for each side to identify potential tariff cuts on non-strategic goods, called the "Board of Trade," and that Chinese exports in that treatment could include "consumer goods, low-tech items," while U.S. exports could include energy, agricultural goods and medical devices. re145, Reuters, US Treasury's Bessent, China's He to meet on 'unfinished business' before Trump-Xi summit
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a Fox News interview on September 23 that the "Busan Agreement", which was due to expire on November 10, would be extended until 10 January 2027. CNBC reported that Chinese shipments of rare earth magnets to the U.S. fell to 512 metric tons in August, down 20% from July and 13% from a year earlier, according to Chinese customs data reported by the Financial Times. Bloomberg, citing Chinese customs data, put the monthly fall at 21%. CNBC reports a 20% monthly fall and Bloomberg reports 21%. re140, Fortune India, US-China Trade Truce Extended to January 2027 as Trump-Xi Summit Targets Bigger Economic Deal re141, CNBC, Soybeans, planes and rare earths signify fragile U.S.-China trade truce re122, Yahoo Finance, China Rare-Earth Magnet Exports to US Drop Before Xi-Trump Meet
On September 24, Reuters wrote that Trump was meeting that Thursday with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Reuters' Ernest Scheyder wrote that the US will remain reliant on China for rare earths well into the 2030s even as it rapidly builds its own mining and processing facilities. Benchmark Mineral Intelligence data in the story said US output of the two most-commonly used rare earths had more than tripled since Trump returned to office, but the country can only meet 42% of its demand and within five years will still rely on imports for nearly a quarter of its demand. The Diplomat headlined its piece on the summit: "Rare Earths at the Trump-Xi Summit: Relief Without a Resolution." Afterwards the White House said the two sides agreed to discuss supply chain issues related to rare earths and critical mineral shortages "with the goal of ensuring shipment levels return to appropriate levels." re142, Reuters, China's rare earths dominance to overshadow Trump's talks with Xi re144, The Diplomat, Rare Earths at the Trump-Xi Summit: Relief Without a Resolution re143, Inside Trade, White House: U.S., China have agreed to discuss critical mineral shortages
Benchmark published its Q3 2026 Rare Earths Price Review on 25th September 2026. BMI Dysprosium Oxide CIF Europe increased 150% by quarter-end, and CIF Europe dysprosium oxide prices were around 16.3 times DDP China price levels. By September, dysprosium oxide CIF Europe reached an average of $3,500/kg and terbium oxide rose 23% to $6,745/kg. In China, the PrNd oxide assessment averaged RMB729,500/t (USD$108,696) in September. Ex-China PrNd prices rose 12% to $106,500/t on a CIF basis. re119, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, Ex-China heavy rare earths up: Q3 2026 Rare Earths Price Review
On October 2, 2026, GM's Global Chief Procurement and Supply Chain Officer Shilpan Amin wrote that in the early 1980s, GM researchers helped pioneer a process for producing powerful neodymium-based permanent magnets. re127, news.gm.com, From mine to magnet to motor: How GM is building critical supply chains for the long term