"US proposes critical minerals trade bloc aimed at countering China", 04 February 2026

U.S. Vice President JD Vance on Wednesday unveiled plans to marshal allies into a preferential trade bloc for critical minerals, proposing coordinated price floors as Washington escalates efforts to loosen China's grip on materials crucial to advanced manufacturing...

President Donald Trump's administration has stepped up efforts to secure U.S. supplies of critical minerals after China rattled senior officials and global markets last year by withholding rare earths required by American automakers and other industrial manufacturers.

Trump on Monday launched a U.S. strategic stockpile of critical minerals, called Project Vault...Secretary of State Marco Rubio said 55 countries attended the talks in Washington, among them South Korea, India, Thailand, Japan, Germany, Australia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, all with varying refining or mining capabilities...

At the meeting, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced a bilateral plan with Mexico and a trilateral agreement with the European Union and Japan to strengthen critical mineral supply chains and set the stage for a broader agreement with other allies...

Argentina's foreign ministry separately announced it had agreed on a framework agreement with the U.S. to strengthen and diversify supply chains as the South American nation looks to boost its copper and lithium exports...

A multi-country effort to establish price floors of critical minerals is the Trump administration's latest move to exert control over private business. The White House has taken stakes in several mineral companies as well as chipmaker Intel, opens new tab and has negotiated deals with drugmakers for lower prices...

The approach could reshape global supply chains for materials essential to electric vehicles, semiconductors and defense systems, while raising costs for manufacturers in the short term and escalating trade tensions with Beijing...