Pentagon Buys Rare Earths Stake to Tackle China’s Dominance

The US made its biggest move yet to push back against China’s weaponization of rare earths, with the Pentagon buying into a key American producer to secure supply of magnets critical for military and other applications.

The Department of Defense agreed a $400 million equity investment in MP Materials Corp., the company that revived a dormant mine in California. Together with $1 billion in funding from JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the commitment will fund a major new plant making rare-earth magnets.

MP’s shares soared as much as 60% in New York, while other ...