China arrests suspects involved in smuggling strategic minerals, and authorities warn of ‘increasingly covert’ tactics to evade detection.

China has quietly issued its first 2025 rare earth mining and smelting quotas without the typical public statement, sources with knowledge of the matter said this week, another sign of Beijing tightening its control over the crucial sector.

China’s exports of rare-earth products jumped in June, pointing to a potential pickup in magnet supplies after government-imposed curbs that proved to be Beijing’s most powerful weapon in its trade war with the Trump administration.