The US, Japan and the European Union are set to announce plans in the coming weeks to lay the foundation for a trade agreement in critical minerals, according to people familiar with the preparations…The Office of the US Trade Representative, which has led negotiations with Brussels and Tokyo on the framework, will also head talks for a trade deal that is set to include a price floor and tariffs for the materials to counter any market distortions by China, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity…Global efforts to diversify critical minerals supply chains intensified after Beijing last year imposed sweeping export controls, including on rare earths and critical minerals, in response to President Donald Trump’s so-called Liberation Day tariffs, which set a 10% levy on nearly all American imports…A price floor would set a minimum price for producers to incentivize investment and prevent any efforts to undercut the deal with cheaper exports from China.

The US Department of Energy (DOE) plans to provide up to $500 million in funding to expand domestic critical minerals processing and battery materials manufacturing and recycling, as Washington seeks to reduce reliance on foreign supply chains…The funding opportunity, issued by the DOE’s Office of Critical Minerals and Energy Innovation (CMEI) on Friday afternoon, seeks to support demonstration and commercial-scale facilities that process or recycle critical materials used in batteries and energy technologies…The move is part of a broader push by Washington to rebuild domestic critical mineral supply chains, which are currently dominated by overseas processing hubs, particularly in China.

Commodity trader Glencore has pulled sizeable cobalt stocks from China's Wuxi ‌exchange to honour commitments to electric-vehicle battery makers in the country, due to limited supply of the material, two sources familiar with the matter said…London-listed Glencore  supplies its Chinese clients with cobalt ​mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo…Congo's government suspended exports in February last year to ​support cobalt prices which had dropped to nine-year lows. The suspension remained in place ​until Congo introduced export quotas last October…Glencore was able to take cobalt it had stockpiled in Malaysia to China last year, one of the sources said, but the Swiss-based firm doesn't have ​enough to meet its contractual obligations in the country…Cobalt metal prices have ​increased 160% since February 2025 to $26/lb or $57,320 a ton due ​to shortages ⁠created by Congo's move to restrict exports…Cobalt ⁠hydroxide ​is priced as a percentage of the cobalt ​metal price - known as payables…Traders say payables are now regularly quoted at record highs of 100%. Cobalt hydroxide ​payables were at 55% in January 2025.

A Eurasian Resources Group unit urged the Democratic Republic of Congo to stop illegal mining activities on one of the firm’s copper licenses following a deadly landslide…Illicit mining caused the landslide on March 11 that “led to fatalities and injuries,” Boss Mining SAS said in a statement Thursday. The copper producer – in which ERG owns a 51% stake – said the Congolese authorities should restore its “lawful access to these areas.”…Congo’s mineral-rich southeastern region has made the country the world’s leading supplier of battery metal cobalt and No. 2 producer of copper. While industrial operations account for most output, hundreds of thousands of so-called artisanal miners work in the informal economy, often digging up ore within permits held by major companies.

Resource-rich African nations are increasingly asserting control over critical minerals to maximise domestic returns, sending global prices soaring and exerting pressure on Chinese supply chains…The Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) has also sought to extract higher returns from its mineral sales, imposing cobalt export controls last year following a sharp decline in global prices. The embargo was eventually replaced in October by a quota system to rebalance the market, with Kinshasa setting limits of 96,600 tonnes this year…Although China dominates the processing of cobalt, an essential metal used in batteries for electric vehicles and other electronics, it depends heavily on the DR Congo for raw materials…As the world’s top cobalt producer, the DR Congo accounts for 70 per cent of China’s supply. But its export quotas have created a supply squeeze for Chinese refineries, forcing them to draw from domestic stockpiles. The price of refined cobalt more than doubled from a low of US$10 per pound early last year to more than US$25 per pound by early this year…Karkare said Chinese firms preferred to buy concentrates for both lithium and cobalt because it was more economically viable to refine these materials in China.

Canada’s North is going through a period of profound change. The world is becoming more dangerous and divided. The assumptions that shaped decades of Canadian defence and security are being upended. Climate change is causing our Arctic region to warm nearly three times faster than the global average, a shift that great powers are actively looking to exploit…For decades, previous Canadian governments have taken measures to build and secure the North. But these lacked the scale and the breadth of strategy that this vast region demands. Canada’s new government has the ambition and capacity to do this, and Prime Minister Carney is acting with our Territorial and Indigenous partners to seize the opportunity. We are moving forward with a comprehensive plan backed by over $40 billion, including more than $35 billion in federal investments to defend, build, and transform Canada’s Northern and Arctic region, and major projects that represent around $10 billion in investment…Canada is moving from reliance to resilience. We will no longer depend on any one nation, and instead build a stronger, more independent country. With this new plan, Canada is taking full responsibility for defending our Arctic sovereignty. We will boldly develop the critical minerals, clean energy, and trade corridors – the full economic potential – of the region…To connect, build, and transform Canada’s Arctic and Northern region, Canada’s new government is referring the following projects to the Major Projects Office…The Mackenzie Valley Highway…This 800 km-long highway will become a vital artery for the region, providing essential year-round access to Indigenous and remote communities in the Mackenzie Valley, building on an initial federal investment of over $100 million…This road will connect Yellowknife to Inuvik, and open up commercial opportunities along the route…Taltson Hydro Expansion Project…This will add 60 megawatts to the existing hydro system, doubling the Northwest Territories’ hydro capacity and serving 70% of residents.