United States President Donald Trump signed an executive order to implement tariffs on imports from Mexico, Canada, and China on Saturday February 1, sparking swift retaliation and sending world trade into uncharted territory.

The weaponization of critical minerals supplies due to trade tensions could lead to the kind of emergency that would provide the push that the US needs to develop its metals and mining sector, the chief executive officer of Alaska Energy Metals has said.

President Donald Trump’s long-promised series of day-one executive orders imply a seismic shift in the approach of the United States to the environment, critical minerals and energy.

Over a decade since its first attempt, Glencore appears to have taken another tilt at Rio Tinto.

Africa’s first transcontinental rail network, known as the Lobito Corridor, which aims to eventually connect almost the entire regional copper-cobalt belt with additional links across sub-Saharan Africa, is on track to break ground early in 2026, a senior official at the US Department of State told Fastmarkets.

The possibility that tax credits for electric vehicles (EVs) will be rescinded under the new administration of President-elect Donald Trump has given US sales – and some automotive manufacturers – a long sought-after boost.

Reducing reliance on China’s hugely successful critical minerals supply chain dominance was never going to be easy, as some western mining companies are finding out the hard way.

Chinese battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited (CATL) has been added to the US Department of Defense’s Chinese Military Company (CMC) list.

European imports of pipeline natural gas from Russia via Ukraine have ended, putting the region’s metals smelters and refineries on alert for potential hikes in operational costs.

“Trump Tariffs” will be back in 2025 and commodities markets are bracing for the impact.