Energy Insider: Tariff War Drives Up China Northern Rare Earth’s Profit
00:00/00:00
Listen to this article
1x
Subscribe now
Listen to the full version
Listen to the full version
Tariff war boosts rare earth prices
China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co. Ltd.’s net profit skyrocketed nearly 2,000% year-on-year for the first half of 2025, fueled by soaring rare earth prices stemming from the U.S.-China tariff war. The world’s largest producer of the crucial minerals reported its revenue climbed 45% to 18.9 billion yuan as Chinese export controls implemented in April helped drive up prices of key materials like didymium. The company, which holds the vast majority of China’s light rare earth mining quota, also benefited from increased sales. Reflecting the dramatic profit boom, the company’s stock has surged this year.
You've accessed an article available only to subscribers
VIEW OPTIONS
Unlock exclusive discounts with a Caixin group subscription — ideal for teams and organizations.
Subscribe to both Caixin Global and The Wall Street Journal — for the price of one.
Share this article
Open WeChat and scan the QR code
- DIGEST HUB
Digest Hub
Back
Explore the story in 30 seconds
- China Northern Rare Earth’s net profit surged nearly 2,000% in H1 2025, driven by tariff war–fueled rare earth price increases.
- China’s wind and solar capacity reached 1,680 GW by July 2025, tripling since 2020; Sinopec and ACWA Power plan the world’s largest green hydrogen/ammonia facility.
- BYD exported EVs from Thailand to Europe for the first time; UBS projects China’s robotaxi market could reach $180 billion by the late 2030s.
AI generated, for reference only
Who’s Who
- China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co. Ltd.
- China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co. Ltd.'s net profit surged nearly 2,000% in the first half of 2025. This was driven by a 45% revenue increase to 18.9 billion yuan, fueled by rising rare earth prices due to the U.S.-China tariff war and Chinese export controls. The company, the world's largest producer of these minerals, holds most of China's light rare earth mining quota.
- Sinopec
- Sinopec has entered into a front-end engineering design contract with ACWA Power for the Yanbu green hydrogen and green ammonia project in Saudi Arabia. A joint venture involving a Sinopec subsidiary will provide preliminary engineering services for this complex, anticipated to be the world's largest of its kind upon completion in 2030.
- ACWA Power
- Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power has signed a front-end engineering design contract with Sinopec for the Yanbu green hydrogen and green ammonia project. A joint venture involving a Sinopec subsidiary and a Spanish company will provide preliminary engineering services for the project, which is set to become the world's largest of its kind upon completion in 2030.
- PetroChina
- PetroChina is investigating using stablecoins for cross-border settlements and payments. In the first half of 2025, the company reported a revenue of 1.45 trillion yuan and a net profit of 84 billion yuan. These figures represent a 6.7% and 5.4% year-on-year decrease, respectively, attributed to volatile oil prices and weaker domestic demand.
- BYD Co. Ltd.
- BYD Co. Ltd. (比亚迪) has started exporting electric vehicles from its new factory in Thailand to Europe. The first shipment, over 900 Dolphin hatchbacks, is bound for Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. This Thai plant, BYD's first overseas passenger-car production base, launched in July 2024 with a planned annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles.
- BYD Auto (Thailand) Co. Ltd.
- BYD Auto (Thailand) Co. Ltd. recently shipped over 900 Dolphin hatchbacks from its new factory in Thailand, destined for Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. This marks the first export of electric vehicles by the Chinese EV giant BYD from its Thai facility to Europe. The factory, BYD's first overseas passenger-car production base, started operations in July 2024 with an annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles.
- Eni
- Eni is developing an LNG project in the Republic of the Congo. The NGUYA, the largest floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) facility built by a Chinese company, has been shipped to the west coast of Africa to serve as the core production unit for this project.
AI generated, for reference only
What Happened When
- End of 2020：
- China’s wind and solar capacity was at 530 GW.
- July 2024：
- BYD's factory in Thailand began operations with a planned annual capacity of 150,000 vehicles.
- 2025：
- China Northern Rare Earth’s stock price surged.
- 2025：
- Robotaxi services are available in Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and Wuhan.
- 2025：
- BYD began exporting cars from its new factory in Thailand to Europe.
- First half of 2025：
- China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co. Ltd. reported net profit surged nearly 2,000% year-on-year and revenue climbed 45% to 18.9 billion yuan due to high rare earth prices amid the U.S.-China tariff war.
- First half of 2025：
- PetroChina reported revenue of 1.45 trillion yuan and net profit of 84 billion yuan, both down year-on-year. Refined oil consumption on the Chinese mainland fell 3%-4%.
- April 2025：
- China implemented export controls that further drove up rare earth material prices.
- End of July 2025：
- China’s total installed wind and solar capacity reached 1,680 GW, more than tripling since end 2020.
- August 2025：
- The NGUYA, China’s largest domestically built FLNG facility, was shipped to the west coast of Africa.
- August 25, 2025：
- BYD Auto (Thailand) announced the first export shipment of over 900 vehicles to Europe.
- August 28, 2025：
- WTI crude futures closed at $64.6 per barrel (up 0.7%), Brent at $68.62 (up 0.84%), and the Baltic Dry Index fell 1.42% to 2,017.
AI generated, for reference only
- PODCAST
- MOST POPULAR
Sign in with Google
Sign in with Facebook
Sign in with 财新