Plans for Trump to Establish Mineral Reserves Send Rare Earth Mining Stocks Soaring

President Trump is preparing a large-scale plan to establish a strategic reserve of critical minerals. Fueled by this news, shares of U.S.-listed rare earth mining companies collectively rose on Monday.

According to a White House official, the proposal, dubbed the "Gold Vault Plan," aims to establish the United States' first strategic reserve of critical minerals for the private sector. The initiative will pool $1.67 billion in private capital and be matched with a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank. The core objective of Trump's move is to reduce U.S. reliance on foreign sources for critical materials needed in electric vehicles, defense systems, and advanced technologies.

During Monday's early trading session, MP Materials Corp., the operator of the Mountain Pass rare earth mine in California, saw its stock price surge by 6%. Meanwhile, shares of USA Rare Earth and Critical Metals Corp. rose by 13% and 12%, respectively. Investors widely believe that this policy initiative is expected to boost demand in the U.S. market and bring government-backed financing benefits to the industry.

U.S. Rare Earth had previously engaged in discussions with Commerce Secretary Rutnik to promote its domestic mining and magnet assets business to the federal government. The ongoing negotiations are expected to lead to a proposed agreement, which, if certain conditions are met, could secure the company approximately $1.6 billion in funding, with the U.S. government acquiring a partial equity stake in the company.

In recent years, the U.S. government has begun to play a more direct role in the rare earth industry, and this latest initiative is a continuation of that trend. Last summer, the U.S. Department of Defense reached an agreement with MP Materials, covering government equity participation, price floor mechanisms, and long-term contracts for the procurement of specific volumes of rare earth ores and magnet products.