Global rare earth mine production 2023, by leading country

In 2023, China had a mine production of some 240,000 metric tons of rare-earth oxide. China is the world's largest producer of rare earths by a large margin. The United States is distantly the world’s second-largest rare earths producer, with an output of about one-fifth the volume of China.

The leading rare earths producing countries

As the world’s leading producer, China’s rare earth mines accounted for nearly 70 percent of the total global production in 2023. In 2016 China’s production share was even higher—at a stark 83 percent of global production. The U.S. rare earths production share was comparatively much lower, accounting for 12.3 percent of global production in 2023. Following China and the U.S. in production that year were Myanmar and Australia, with production volumes of 38,000 metric tons and 18,000 metric tons, respectively.

What exactly are rare earths?

Rare earth elements, also called rare earth metals, are a group of 17 chemical elements. The following elements are among rare earths: cerium (Ce), dysprosium (Dy), erbium (Er), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), holmium (Ho), lanthanum (La), lutetium (Lu), neodymium (Nd), praseodymium (Pr), promethium (Pm), samarium (Sm), scandium (Sc), terbium (Tb), thulium (Tm), ytterbium (Yb), and yttrium (Y). The largest subgroup within it are the 15 lanthanides. The two other elements are scandium and yttrium. Based on quantity, the lanthanides cerium, lanthanum, and neodymium are the most produced rare earth elements. Yttrium, one of the rare earths that was explored first, got its name from the town where it was discovered – Ytterby, Sweden. Rare earth elements are crucial for several key technologies. They are used for, among many other things, lasers, battery electrodes, magnets, MRI contrast agents, catalysts, alloys, and more.