U.S. Minerals Stocks Tumble After White House Signals Market Controls
Trump's Price Floor Plan Shakes Rare Earth and Uranium Stocks
This article first appeared on GuruFocus. U.S.-listed rare earth and critical minerals stocks slid sharply on Wednesday after the Trump administration floated plans for a new trading bloc with allied nations that would use tariffs to enforce price floors, rattling investors across the sector. The proposal, outlined at a U.S. State Department event, aims to shield Western producers from what officials described as persistent oversupply and price undercutting by China. Vice President JD Vance said adjustable tariffs could be used to maintain minimum reference prices for key minerals, calling the mechanism essential to preserving pricing integrity in strategic supply chains.
Warning! GuruFocus has detected 1 Warning Sign with USAR. Is USAR fairly valued? Test your thesis with our free DCF calculator. Shares of companies exposed to rare earths, uranium and other critical materials fell broadly, like MP Materials Corp (NYSE:MP), and USA Rare Earth (NASDAQ:USAR), with double-digit declines seen across several smaller producers and developers, while larger names also retreated. The sell-off came despite recent policy moves intended to support domestic supply. Earlier this week, President Donald Trump announced Project Vault, a plan to establish a strategic U.S. stockpile of rare earth elements.
The initiative includes a $10 billion loan commitment from the U.S. Export-Import Bank alongside private-sector funding. In a separate step, the government recently agreed to invest $1.6 billion in USA Rare Earth, marking its fourth direct equity-backed investment in a U.S. critical minerals producer.