Trump’s “Project Vault” sparks a rare-earth rally – miners pop as Washington moves to wean off China

With input from CNBC, Reuters, CBS News, the Financial Times, and Forbes.

Stocks of US-listed rare-earth miners jumped Monday after reports that the White House is pushing a big new plan to build a strategic stockpile of critical minerals – a move meant to cut America’s reliance on Chinese supply chains.

Called “Project Vault,” the effort would pair roughly $1.67 billion in private capital with a $10 billion, 15-year loan from the US Export-Import Bank to buy and hold rare earths and other critical minerals for automakers, tech firms and defense contractors. The initiative, first reported by Bloomberg, is pitched as a first-of-its-kind private-sector stockpile with government backing; EXIM’s board was set to vote on authorizing the loan. A White House official described the plan to Reuters; the administration hasn’t issued a full public rollout yet.

Markets cheered the prospect of guaranteed demand and easier financing for domestic producers. MP Materials, which runs the Mountain Pass mine in California, surged about 6% in early trading. USA Rare Earth and Critical Metals Corp. jumped roughly 13% and 12%, respectively – traders betting Project Vault could speed up government contracts and cash flows for the industry.

The plan would go beyond a simple loan program. Bloomberg and Reuters reports say the package could include a US government equity stake in companies that meet conditions, and big commodities traders – Hartree Partners, Traxys North America and Mercuria – would likely run procurement and logistics for the stockpile. The administration has talked to both producers and users: Trump was slated to meet with GM CEO Mary Barra and mining billionaire Robert Friedland, among others, as the plan took shape.

Project Vault builds on recent US steps to shore up domestic supply: the Department of Defense already struck a deal with MP Materials last year that included government equity, a price floor and a long-term purchase agreement for magnets and rare earths. And USA Rare Earth has reportedly been in conversations with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick about potential funding and sales of domestic magnet assets to the federal government.

Why it matters: rare earths and critical minerals are the building blocks for electric vehicles, semiconductors, advanced weapons systems and other tech. Policymakers say China’s dominant position – and occasional price moves that can handicap US producers – makes a strategic stockpile attractive. Project Vault is being framed as a way to stabilize prices, guarantee a domestic supply cushion (officials floated a 60-day emergency supply target), and give US manufacturers a way to source materials without stuffing the balance sheets of private firms.

Not everyone’s thrilled with the details yet. The White House hasn’t confirmed every aspect publicly, and EXIM’s planned $10 billion loan will need board sign-off. There are also questions about how long it will take to build usable inventories, where the minerals will be processed into finished components, and whether the program will actually lower dependence on China or simply shift the logistics and cost burdens.

For now, investors focused on the near term: the idea of guaranteed government demand and a big capital backstop is enough to lift miners’ stocks. If Project Vault clears the legal, political and logistical hurdles, it could be a major inflection point for the US mining and processing industry. If it stalls, the rally may prove short-lived.