Trump signs critical minerals agreement with Australia

President Trump signed an agreement Monday to heighten cooperation with Australia on rare earth materials and critical minerals.

Trump signed the agreement alongside Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who visited the White House.

“We are discussing critical minerals and rare earths, and we’re going to be signing an agreement that’s been negotiated over a period of four or five months,” Trump said.

The full text of the agreement was not immediately available. Albanese said the deal calls for a $1 billion contribution each from Australia and the United States over the next six months.

It includes investments in joint projects between the two countries on rare earths, as well as U.S. investments in Australia to boost processing of critical minerals. It also includes planned projects among the U.S., Australia and other allies, such as Japan, Albanese said.

While the agreement was in the works for some time, the announcement came after China announced new restrictions on exporting critical minerals.

Rare earths and critical minerals are used in numerous products, including cars, semiconductors and electronics like laptops.

Trump administration officials announced plans this week to take a more active role in ensuring access to rare earths in response to the new Chinese export restrictions.

China earlier this month announced foreign entities must obtain a license in order to export any products containing more than 0.1 percent of rare earths that are either sourced in China or manufactured using China’s extraction process.

China plays an outsized role in the sector, accounting for nearly 70 percent of the world’s rare earth mining as of 2024, according to Oxford Economics.

Trump told reporters that he was set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month at a summit in South Korea. Trump last week suggested the meeting may not happen in light of China’s export moves.