Brazil rare earths hold 23% of global reserves — second only to China. Lula told Trump: all investment welcome, but processing stays on Brazilian soil. A $2.8B US acquisition of Serra Verde is on the table. If America loses this deal, China moves in. The window is closing fast.
G7 rare earths took center stage in Paris, May 2026, as finance ministers warned of China's 90% stranglehold on global processing. With the Strait of Hormuz virtually closed and oil above $103, the West is finally treating mineral dependency as the national security emergency it always was.
Trump lands in Beijing on May 13, 2026, with Elon Musk, Jensen Huang, Tim Cook, and a trillion-dollar CEO delegation — the first U.S. presidential visit to China in nearly a decade. Three goals: trade reset, Iran pressure, and Taiwan stability. China even quietly renamed Rubio to let him in. Strength works.
China's new trade rules unveiled in April are alarming U.S. businesses because they could penalize foreign companies attempting to shift sourcing away from China. Beijing is weaponizing legal pressure to block the very "derisking" Washington demands, turning corporate fear into a negotiating tool ahead of a potential Trump-Xi summit.
