Mục lục
Malaysia exported almost $485 million worth of certain rare earth compounds in 2025. Its own mines, meanwhile, produced an estimated 110 tonnes of rare earths. China mined 270,000 tonnes during the same year, yet its exports in that particular compound category were worth less than Malaysia’s.
The figures are not contradictory. They measure different activities.
Rare earth materials regularly cross borders between mining, separation and manufacturing. A shipment leaving Malaysia may contain minerals extracted in Australia. Material shipped from Japan may have been imported and processed before being sold overseas.
For anyone comparing rare earth suppliers, the distinction matters. Mine production tells us where the minerals are extracted; customs data shows where particular products enter international trade. Neither gives a complete account of the finished magnet industry.
This review uses 2025 mine-production estimates from the USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026 and trade records published by World Bank WITS.
Top 10 Rare Earth Producing Countries in 2025
China accounted for roughly 69% of global rare earth mine production in 2025. USGS estimates put worldwide output at 390,000 tonnes of rare-earth-oxide (REO) equivalent, including 270,000 tonnes from China.
Rank | Quốc gia | Production (Tonnes REO) | World Share |
1 | Trung Quốc | 270,000 | 69.2% |
2 | United States | 51,000 | 13.1% |
3 | Úc | 29,000 | 7.4% |
4 | Myanmar | 22,000 | 5.6% |
5 | Thailand | 4,800 | 1.2% |
6 | Ấn Độ | 2,900 | 0.7% |
7 | Madagascar | 2,700 | 0.7% |
8 | Russia | 2,600 | 0.7% |
9 | Brazil | 2,000 | 0.5% |
10 | Nigeria | 1,500 | 0.4% |
Source: USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026. All production figures are estimates for 2025.
The first four countries supplied approximately 95% of global production. That leaves a relatively small share for established producers such as India and Russia, as well as countries developing newer operations.
China’s position is supported by more than mineral resources. Its mining sector operates alongside chemical separation plants, metal producers, alloy manufacturers and permanent magnet factories. Domestic customers also consume substantial quantities of the materials produced.
The United States has made measurable progress further downstream. MP Materials, the company operating Mountain Pass in California, reported producing 50,692 tonnes of REO in concentrate during 2025. Its separated neodymium-praseodymium oxide output reached 2,599 tonnes.
These figures describe different products and should not be treated as a simple recovery-rate calculation. They do, however, illustrate the difference between producing mixed mineral concentrate and making separated materials suitable for further industrial processing.
Australia has another advantage: an established commercial route for its mined material. Rare earth concentrate from Mt Weld is processed through facilities operated by Lynas in Australia and Malaysia. Buyers can therefore source separated materials from a business whose mining and processing operations extend across two countries.
Myanmar’s importance is somewhat different. It has been a significant source of heavy rare earth feedstock associated with dysprosium and terbium. Those elements are used in certain high-coercivity permanent magnets, particularly where operating temperatures are demanding.
The smaller producers should not be dismissed purely on tonnage. Their geological deposits, product composition and ability to establish processing partnerships may prove more important than their current ranking.
Top 10 Rare Earth Exporting Countries
Export rankings are harder to interpret because rare earths are traded in several forms.
Mineral concentrates, individual oxides, chemical compounds, metals and finished NdFeB magnets fall into different customs classifications. The figures below cover HS 284690, which includes compounds of rare earth metals, yttrium and scandium, excluding cerium compounds.
They are not a ranking of every rare earth product exported worldwide.
Largest Exporters of Rare Earth Compounds in 2025
Rank | Quốc gia | Export Value (USD Million) |
1 | Malaysia | 484.56 |
2 | Trung Quốc | 347.67 |
3 | United States | 218.16 |
4 | Nhật Bản | 165.17 |
5 | France | 60.21 |
6 | Đức | 51.13 |
7 | Hàn Quốc | 36.86 |
8 | Hà Lan | 34.90 |
9 | Ấn Độ | 34.06 |
10 | Norway | 21.81 |
Source: World Bank WITS / UN Comtrade, 2025, HS 284690. Values represent reported gross exports. The European Union aggregate is omitted to avoid counting the same trade alongside individual member countries.
What Explains Malaysia's Export Position?
Malaysia’s place at the top of the table is closely associated with the rare earth processing industry around Kuantan.
Lynas Malaysia has operated in the Gebeng Industrial Estate since 2012. The plant receives concentrate and intermediate materials from the company’s Australian operations, including Mt Weld and Kalgoorlie.
Processing involves chemical treatment, solvent extraction and product finishing. Depending on the material, the resulting products can include separated neodymium-praseodymium oxide, cerium products and selected heavy rare earth oxides.
This processing work creates export value in Malaysia even though the underlying minerals were largely extracted elsewhere.
Trade destinations provide another useful clue. Of Malaysia’s reported $484.6 million in HS 284690 exports during 2025, approximately $211.4 million went to China, $123 million to Vietnam and $80.8 million to Japan.
China was therefore not only a competitor in the export table; it was also Malaysia’s largest reported customer for this category.
The figures reveal a manufacturing network with considerable two-way dependence rather than a simple division between Chinese and non-Chinese suppliers.
Why Does China Export More by Weight?
Malaysia ranked first by export value, but China shipped considerably more material.
WITS recorded approximately 39.4 million kilograms exported from China under HS 284690 in 2025. Malaysia shipped about 22.3 million kilograms.
Looking at the reported totals, the average declared export value works out to roughly $8.82 per kilogram for China and $21.74 for Malaysia.
It would be a mistake to interpret that difference as a direct price comparison between equivalent products. HS 284690 groups together materials with different chemical compositions, purities and applications. Customs values may also reflect different commercial arrangements.
The figures nevertheless demonstrate why trade value cannot be used as a substitute for physical production capacity.
China remains active across a much wider range of rare earth products than this table captures.
The United States and Japan
The United States ranked third in compound export value, with approximately $218.2 million recorded in 2025.
One detail in the destination data is revealing: around $67.7 million of those exports went to China and $57.1 million to Vietnam.
Such trade should not be confused with the sales of any single mining company. For example, MP Materials reported ending its rare earth concentrate sales to China in July 2025. National customs statistics encompass many businesses, products and transactions.
Japan’s position also deserves attention. It exported approximately $165.2 million of rare earth compounds, with Vietnam and the Philippines among its largest destinations.
Japan has an established industry in advanced materials and precision manufacturing. Its importance does not depend on being a leading mining country. Imported materials can enter specialized processing operations or international distribution networks before appearing in Japanese export statistics.
Which Country Exports the Most Rare Earth Metals?
Rare earth metals are classified separately from the compounds discussed above.
For HS 280530, which includes rare earth metals, scandium and yttrium, China was the leading exporter in 2025.
Rank | Quốc gia | Export Value (USD Million) |
1 | Trung Quốc | 140.54 |
2 | Thailand | 79.78 |
3 | Hà Lan | 20.54 |
4 | Nhật Bản | 12.96 |
5 | Hàn Quốc | 8.64 |
Source: World Bank WITS, HS 280530, 2025.
China exported approximately 9.75 million kilograms under this classification. Japan was its largest destination by value, accounting for around $85.7 million.
Thailand, the second-largest exporter, recorded shipments worth nearly $79.8 million. Japan and Vietnam together represented most of its reported export value.
These differences between the compound and metal rankings are not minor statistical details. A company purchasing rare earth metal for alloy production is buying a different material from one purchasing separated oxide for chemical processing.
The relevant supplier countries may differ accordingly.
Where Rare Earth Processing Becomes More Important Than Mining
Producing a mineral concentrate does not mean a country can manufacture permanent magnets from it.
The chemistry becomes more demanding after extraction. Individual rare earth elements must be separated from mixtures containing several chemically similar elements. Magnet production then requires conversion to metals, alloy preparation and tightly controlled manufacturing steps.
China has accumulated extensive industrial capacity in these stages.
According to the International Energy Agency, China represented approximately 60% of global mining output for magnet rare earths in 2024. Its share increased to around 91% of refining and 94% of sintered permanent magnet production.
These percentages are specifically for magnet-related supply chains. They should not be confused with the broader USGS mining estimate covering all rare earth production.
The difference is commercially important. An electric motor manufacturer cannot necessarily replace an established magnet supplier simply because another country opens a new rare earth mine.
The replacement supply chain needs reliable material separation, metal conversion, suitable magnet grades and production consistency. Each stage requires investment, technical expertise and customers willing to qualify the resulting products.
That process is progressing outside China, but mining capacity and magnet manufacturing capacity are growing at different rates.
Could Brazil Become a Major Rare Earth Producer?
Brazil has one of the largest gaps between its estimated mineral reserves and its annual mine production.
USGS reports approximately 21 million tonnes of rare earth reserves in Brazil, compared with 44 million tonnes in China. Brazil’s mine output, however, was only about 2,000 tonnes in 2025.
The Pela Ema project operated by Serra Verde in Goiás offers an example of how that gap might narrow.
Commercial production began in 2024. The operation produces mixed rare earth carbonate containing neodymium, praseodymium and the valuable heavy rare earth elements dysprosium and terbium.
In August 2026, Serra Verde announced progress on a long-term offtake agreement involving the U.S. government and indicated that the operation was expected to reach an annualized rate of approximately 4,000 tonnes of total rare earth oxide by the end of 2026.
That is a company target rather than a confirmed full-year production figure.
Brazil’s development illustrates an important constraint in rare earth supply. Large reserves may attract investment, but customers still need materials in a usable chemical form, dependable output and a commercially viable route into downstream manufacturing.
What the Rankings Mean for Rare Earth Buyers
For procurement teams, the country where a shipment originates is useful information, though rarely sufficient.
A buyer ordering neodymium-praseodymium oxide should confirm the required composition, purity, impurity limits and available quality documentation. If the material will be converted into metal, compatibility with the intended refining process also matters.
Finished NdFeB magnets involve a separate set of requirements. Magnetic grade, intrinsic coercivity, thermal performance, coating and dimensional tolerance all affect whether a component is suitable for its application.
The heavy rare earth content may also need attention. Dysprosium and terbium are used in certain demanding magnet applications, but their inclusion depends on material design and production technology.
Traceability is another issue. A product exported from Malaysia may contain feedstock mined in Australia. An advanced magnetic component manufactured in Japan may rely on processed rare earth inputs sourced from another country.
It is worth distinguishing the location of the mine, separation facility, metal producer and magnet factory before comparing potential suppliers. Those details are more useful for evaluating supply continuity than the country ranking printed in a market report.
Các câu hỏi thường gặp
Which country produces the most rare earths?
China produced approximately 270,000 tonnes of REO equivalent in 2025, representing about 69% of estimated global mine production.
Which country is the largest rare earth exporter?
The answer depends on the product category. Malaysia led HS 284690 compound exports by value in 2025, while China led HS 280530 rare earth metal exports.
Which country has the largest rare earth reserves?
China has the largest estimated reserves at approximately 44 million tonnes, followed by Brazil with around 21 million tonnes, according to USGS 2026 data.
Why do rare earth production and export rankings differ?
Mining, chemical separation, refining and manufacturing can take place in different countries. Customs statistics record trade according to the exported product and reporting country, not necessarily the original mining location.
Phần kết luận
The production rankings show a mining industry still heavily concentrated in China, with the United States and Australia providing the largest alternative sources of output.
The export figures reveal a more complicated market. Malaysia plays an important role in processed compounds, while Japan and several European countries participate through materials processing, manufacturing and trade.
For companies purchasing rare earth materials, it is useful to read both sets of data. Mine output indicates where resources are being extracted; trade records show where specific materials are entering international markets.
Neither replaces a detailed assessment of the supplier and its processing capabilities.
Bài viết liên quan này có thể HỮU ÍCH cho bạn: Mối quan hệ giữa các nguyên tố đất hiếm và vật liệu nam châm vĩnh cửu
Vietnamese 
English 
Spanish 
French 
Italian 
Portuguese 
Arabic 
Turkish 
Chinese 
Thai 
Japanese 
Korean