China’s move to restrict exports of key rare earth elements is a “precision strike” on US defence and technology supply chains, says Nasdaq-listed NioCorp Developments.

The restrictions, announced by China’s Ministry of Commerce and the General Administration of Customs last week, cover metals, alloys, oxides, and compounds of middle and heavy rare earths including samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium. These materials are essential to a wide range of US defence applications, from stealth aircraft to hypersonic weapons and satellite systems.

“This is a precision strike by China against Pentagon supply chains that enable our most powerful weapons and defense systems, from stealth fighters and precision-guided munitions to satellite systems and hypersonic weapons,” said NioCorp executive chairperson and CEO Mark Smith.

“The US has long known that it walks a fine line by relying so heavily on China for rare earths. With this new move, Beijing is jamming its fingers on the pressure points of American deterrence. These aren’t just metals - they’re bottleneck elements, and without them, much of the Pentagon’s advanced hardware risks slipping from superiority to obsolescence.”

Smith, a four-decade veteran of the mining and rare earths industry, has previously warned of China’s strategic leverage in the critical minerals sector. He said the new restrictions was a “geopolitical earthquake in slow motion".

“This is not a mere supply chain hiccup,” he added. “Every fighter jet delayed, every missile contract disrupted, every paused satellite payload becomes a ripple in America’s strategic posture. And with Russia and China tightening coordination, this may mark the start of a material cold war fought not with tanks, but with export licenses and embargoes.”

NioCorp is developing a critical minerals project in Nebraska aimed at producing processed rare earth elements, as well as niobium, titanium, and scandium - all materials deemed essential by US national security planners. The company has positioned itself as a potential non-Chinese supplier of rare earths to the US and allied nations seeking to reduce dependence on Chinese sources.

China controls the majority of the global rare earths supply chain, and its actions are likely to intensify efforts by Western nations to build domestic production and processing capacity.