Trump's U.S. mining push a hard sell for Japan's trading houses

Analysts and companies say subsidies needed to make U.S. projects viable

20250313 MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine

A view of the MP Materials rare earth open-pit mine in Mountain Pass, California. In 2023, Japan's Sumitomo announced it would reduce the use of Chinese smelters to refine ores mined by MP Materials. © Reuters

RYOHTAROH SATOH

March 14, 2025 14:31 JST

TOKYO -- President Donald Trump's call for increased mining in the U.S. will likely require subsidies to persuade Japanese trading houses to invest in high-risk projects, analysts say.

Trump promised "historic action to dramatically expand the production of critical minerals and rare earths here in the U.S.A.," in his address to a joint session of Congress last week.