China produces more rare earths than any other country: 270,000 of the 390,000 tonnes mined worldwide in 2025, about 69 percent, according to the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026. The United States is a distant second with 51,000 tonnes. But the mining ranking answers the less important question. The step that decides who can actually build an electric motor or a wind turbine happens after the mine, and there the concentration is far higher.
Are rare earths actually rare?
No. The USGS calls them "relatively abundant in the Earth's crust". What is uncommon is a deposit concentrated enough to be worth mining. The name dates back to the 18th century and has been confusing buyers ever since.
Rare earths are a group of 17 elements, and they behave like 17 different markets. In 2025, a kilogram of cerium oxide cost $1.71 while a kilogram of neodymium oxide cost $73 (USGS). When headlines say "rare earth prices are rising", the first question a professional buyer should ask is: which one?
Which countries mine the most rare earths?
The 2025 mine production figures (USGS, in tonnes of rare-earth-oxide equivalent):
- China: 270,000
- United States: 51,000 (up from 45,500 in 2024)
- All other producing countries combined: roughly 69,000
World reserves tell a different story again: more than 85 million tonnes globally, with 44 million in China and 21 million in Brazil (USGS). Geology is not the constraint. Brazil holds a quarter of the world's reserves and mines almost none of it.
Find suitable exporters for your products in seconds – using the ABRAMS.wiki supplier search.
Who refines rare earths? The second map
Mined ore is not usable material. It has to be separated into individual elements and refined, and this is where the market narrows dramatically. The IEA puts China's share of global rare earth refining and separation at 91 percent (2024 data), and at 94 percent for sintered permanent magnets, the products that end up in EV motors and wind turbines. In 2005, that magnet share was around 50 percent.
Those magnets are the commercial core of the entire industry: roughly 95 percent of rare earth consumption by value, driven by neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium and terbium (IEA).
So where rare earths are found and where they become usable are two different maps. The first map is diversifying. The second has barely moved in two decades.
What happened with China's export controls?
The concentration became a live risk in 2025. A short timeline:
April 4, 2025: China introduced export licensing for seven rare earths (samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, yttrium) plus related compounds and magnets. Some automakers outside China reduced output or paused lines while licenses were processed (IEA).
October 9, 2025: Beijing announced a far broader package covering five additional elements, processing equipment, technology and even foreign-made products containing Chinese-origin rare earths.
November 7, 2025: After a US-China agreement, the October package was suspended until November 10, 2026. The April controls were not part of the suspension.
The IEA has estimated what full implementation would put at risk: around 6.5 trillion US dollars of annual downstream production outside China, more than 1.5 trillion each in the United States and Europe, and over 3 trillion in the automotive sector alone. The suspension bought time, nothing more.
Prices reflect the tension. Rare earth prices more than doubled between January 2023 and April 2026, and in spring 2026 European buyers were paying around five times the Chinese domestic price for dysprosium and terbium (IEA).
What does this mean for European industry?
Europe sits at the exposed end of the chain. The EU sources all of its heavy rare earths and 85 percent of its light rare earths from China, and 98 percent of its rare-earth magnets (European Parliament briefing, 2025).
The EU's answer is the Critical Raw Materials Act, with four benchmarks for 2030: at least 10 percent of annual consumption from EU extraction, 40 percent from EU processing, 25 percent from recycling, and no more than 65 percent of any strategic raw material from a single third country at any processing stage. Against a 91 percent refining concentration, the 65 percent rule shows how far there is to go.
Is the concentration easing?
Modestly, yes. The IEA's Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2026 notes a decline in rare earth refining concentration between 2023 and 2025, driven by new projects in the United States and higher output in Malaysia. US mine production rose from 45,500 to 51,000 tonnes in a year.
The gap that remains is still wide. Even counting every announced project, diversified regions would cover only about half of their projected mining needs by 2035, a quarter of refining needs, and less than 20 percent of magnet production (IEA). Closing the gap would take an estimated 60 billion US dollars of investment through 2035. Recycling helps later: it could cut primary supply needs by up to 35 percent by 2050.
The refining gap is not geology. It is the result of decades of industrial policy, and no single mine closes it.
Which HS codes cover rare earths?
Every cross-border shipment travels under a Harmonized System code, and rare earths travel under several. Rare-earth metals, scandium and yttrium are classified under HS Code 280530. Their compounds fall under heading 2846. The permanent magnets made from them move under HS Code 850511.
That distinction matters commercially. A country can appear independent on the ore level and completely dependent on the magnet level. Only the codes make each stage of the chain visible and comparable.
What can trade data tell you that rankings cannot?
A production ranking describes the world. Transaction-level trade data describes your options in it: which companies actually export separated rare-earth compounds, who is already buying magnets from the new non-Chinese capacity, which routes your competitors use, and where volumes are shifting since the 2025 controls. For sourcing teams, the practical question is rarely "who mines the most". It is "who can deliver the processed material, and to whom are they delivering it today".
FAQ
Which country produces the most rare earths?
China, with 270,000 of the 390,000 tonnes mined worldwide in 2025, about 69 percent (USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026). The United States follows with 51,000 tonnes.
Are rare earths really rare?
No. The USGS describes them as relatively abundant in the Earth's crust. Deposits worth mining are the uncommon part, and refining capacity is scarcer still.
Who controls rare earth refining?
China, with around 91 percent of global refining and separation and 94 percent of sintered permanent magnet production (IEA, 2024 data).
Which rare earths are under Chinese export control?
Since April 2025: samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium and yttrium, plus related compounds and magnets. A broader October 2025 package was suspended until November 10, 2026.
What is the HS code for rare earths?
HS 2805.30 covers rare-earth metals, scandium and yttrium; heading 2846 covers their compounds; permanent magnets are classified under HS 8505.11.
How much would independent rare earth supply chains cost?
The IEA estimates around 60 billion US dollars of investment through 2035 for diversified mining, refining and magnet capacity.
Take the opportunity ➜ Schedule a live demo!
Sources: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 (Rare Earths); IEA Rare Earth Elements report and Global Critical Minerals Outlook 2026; European Parliament briefing on China's rare-earth export restrictions (2025); Council of the EU, Critical Raw Materials Act; MOFCOM announcements via CIRS. Last updated: August 2026.
