Automakers Race to Find Workaround to China’s Stranglehold on Rare-Earth Magnets

From WSJ:
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Automakers Race to Find Workaround to China’s Stranglehold on Rare-Earth
Magnets
Major manufacturers, fearful they will have to shut down assembly lines,
consider moving some parts production to China
By Sean McLain and Ryan Felton
June 3, 2025 9:00 pm ET
Key Points
Automakers fear China’s rare-earth magnet export controls may halt car
production within weeks.
Auto firms consider shifting parts manufacturing to China to bypass
export controls on rare-earth magnets.
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    Carmakers weigh alternatives like older tech or feature removal;
Ford already halted Explorer production.
Four major automakers are racing to find workarounds to China’s
stranglehold on rare-earth magnets, which they fear could force them to
shut down some car production within weeks.
..
Ideas under review include producing electric motors in Chinese
factories or shipping made-in-America motors to China to have magnets
installed. Moving production to China as a way to get around the export
controls on rare-earth magnets could work because the restrictions only
cover magnets, not finished parts, the people said.
If automakers end up shifting some production to China, it would amount
to a remarkable outcome from a trade war initiated by President Trump
with the intention of bringing manufacturing back to the U.S.
..
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