GM backed domestic magnet capacity to reduce supply risk after China tightened rare‑earth magnet export controls, protecting EV production.
General Motors has quietly helped revive a U.S. rare‑earth magnet supply chain as China tightens controls on magnet exports, a move that could blunt a major choke point for auto manufacturing. GM seeded investments and long‑term procurement arrangements with domestic suppliers, supporting manufacturers that produce permanent rare‑earth magnets used in electric motors and many vehicle actuators. Suppliers such as Noveon Magnetics have ramped production and quality checks to meet automotive specifications. China’s new, stricter export rules underscore its market leverage: most processing and refinement of rare‑earth elements remains concentrated there, and disruption can force production slowdowns. By locking down domestic sources, automakers aim to reduce reliance on overseas shipments and manage inventory and technical standards across motor designs. Analysts say building a resilient domestic magnet value chain requires time and capital—separating and refining rare earths, alloying, powder processing and magnetization are specialized steps—but early industrial support and guaranteed demand from large OEMs can accelerate scale‑up and lower geopolitical risk for critical EV components.