China’s June 2025 promise to accelerate rare earth-related export license applications has fallen far short based on new Chinese export data for January and February 2026. ¹

Silverado’s latest data dashboard shows that China has continued to weaponize global supply chains for rare earths using its export control regime, with a strategy that largely withholds exports of processed rare earth metals and compounds while allowing the export of further downstream magnets.

Read more below and check out the full data dashboard on our website.

China continues to significantly restrict export-controlled compounds and metals

China continues to restrict exports of export-controlled compounds and metals. China’s combined exports to the world in January and February 2026 were less than one-third of their export levels in the same period in 2024 and 2025. Prior to the implementation of China’s April 2025 export controls, compounds and metals primarily went to four destinations–Japan, the United States, the European Union, and Korea. China restricted exports to all destinations, but impacts have differed by country and economy. ²

Exports of rare earth compounds and metals to the United States remained low in January and February 2026, with China shipping only lutetium to the United States in January and a small amount of yttrium in February. In total, China’s exports of rare earth compounds and metals to the United States from May 2025 to February 2026 totaled only 56 metric tons, compared to 792 metric tons from May 2024 to February 2025–a 93 percent decline. ³ This decline in U.S. imports of rare earth compounds and metals is having a significant impact on some U.S. industries. For example, Reuters recently reported that shortages of yttrium caused some aerospace suppliers to temporarily stop production. ⁴

China imposed restrictions on exports of dual-use goods to Japan in January 2026 and reportedly slowed or halted approvals of new export licenses. ⁵ As a result, shipments of export-controlled rare earths to Japan fell sharply, a significant blow to global supply since Japan was one of the leading export destinations following the implementation of export controls. China exported no export-controlled compounds and metals to Japan in January 2026 and only 7.1 metric tons in February, a steep decline from the July to December 2025 average of over 100 metric tons and even higher levels prior to the implementation of export controls. Shipments of rare earth magnets to Japan continued at relatively strong levels, though magnets are not substitutes for all of the end use applications that rely on imported compounds and metals. ⁶

Shipments of export-controlled rare earth compounds and metals to Korea declined in January and February 2026 from prior months, but were close to the range for normal monthly fluctuations. Exports to the European Union fluctuated on a monthly basis, with it difficult to draw any conclusions about patterns given the high variability in typical monthly import levels and significant exports from November 2025 to January 2026. ⁷

China’s rare earth magnet exports were at normal levels in early 2026, except exports to the United States

China’s combined January and February 2026 exports of rare earth magnets were above levels in the prior two years. The European Union was the largest export destination (accounting for 44 percent of exports), followed by Korea (9 percent), the United States (9 percent), Vietnam (8 percent), India (5 percent), and Japan (4 percent). China’s rare earth magnet exports to the United States in January and February 2026, however, were down 22 percent from 2025 levels and down 11 percent from 2024 levels. ⁸