Exports of the group of 17 chemical elements used in everything from high-tech consumer electronics to military equipment came in at 3,966 tonnes last month.

Rising trade tensions between the United States and China have sparked concerns that Beijing could leverage its dominant position as a supplier of rare earths.

Power Resources Group mines in Rwanda for tantalum, used in mobile phones, and niobium, needed for high-strength alloys.

It means the Asian nation now has a larger and lengthier hold on the company’s rare earths output.

China's exports of rare earth magnets to the United States rose more than 20% in May from the previous month to their highest since at least 2016.

Cheetah will pay Cdn$5 million to acquire ownership of the near-surface mineral resources on the Nechalacho project

No value was put on the agreement but the Chinese company will also have the right to purchase 3,000 tonnes of rare earth products from the project within three years of production.