USA Rare Earth Gains as Government Talks Intensify

Shares of USA Rare Earth surged after CEO Barbara Humpton said the company is in close communication with the Trump administration, which has been taking equity stakes in firms tied to critical U.S. supply chains.

Humpton, who previously led Siemens Government Technologies and sits on the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond board, framed the discussions as part of a broader push to secure a domestic mine-to-magnet rare-earth supply chain. She pointed to recent federal investments in lithium and other critical materials as precedent and said USA Rare Earth is keeping the administration informed of its plans.

Operationally, the company has moved to secure upstream and downstream capacity: it acquired U.K. producer Less Common Metals to bolster heavy rare-earth metals and alloys, is developing the Round Top deposit in Texas with Texas Mineral Resources, and is building a magnet manufacturing plant in Stillwater, Oklahoma. Those steps aim to supply energy, EV, defense and electronics markets with domestically produced magnets and rare-earth materials.

The stock jumped about 13.3% in morning trading, rose roughly 48.5% over the week and has gained strongly year-to-date amid heightened investor interest in critical materials.