Business

Trump stockpiling critical minerals with $12B Project Vault program

Published

2 months ago

2 February 2026

Trump stockpiling critical minerals with $12B Project Vault program

Maria Bartiromo interviews Barbara Humpton, CEO of USA Rare Earth, about the Trump administration’s $1.6 billion investment in domestic rare earth supplies.

President Donald Trump‘s administration announced plans to begin stockpiling critical minerals on Monday, starting off the program with $12 billion in seed money, Fox News has learned.

The new program, first reported by Bloomberg, seeks to insulate U.S. manufacturers from supply shortages as America seeks to lessen its reliance on Chinese materials.

A White House official confirmed to Fox News that the program has been dubbed “Project Vault,” and will kick off with funding of $1.67 billion in private cash as well as a $10 billion loan from the U.S. Export-Import Bank.

Trump is scheduled to meet on Monday with General Motors CEO Mary Barra and mining billionaire Robert Friedland at the White House.

TRUMP HOSTS ‘WASHINGTON ACCORDS’ RWANDA-CONGO PEACE DEAL SIGNING, VOWS US RARE EARTHS PURCHASES

President Donald Trump is seeking to break U.S. reliance on Chinese rare earth materials. (Associated Press)

China currently controls between 60-70% of rare earth mining. Rare earths are the foundation materials for much of modern technology and defense systems. Without these elements, production of EVs, iPhones, F-35 fighter jets, and even MRI machines would stall.

The Trump administration has already sought to diversify by making rare earth agreements with Australia, Japan and countries in Southeast Asia. He has also urged European allies to do the same.

Trump and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese signed an $8.5 billion deal on the topic in October.

FROM MOJAVE TO BEIJING: HOW AMERICA QUIETLY CONCEDED THE RARE EARTH RACE

China controls up to 70% of the world’s rare earth mining. (Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The Chinese government restricted the exports of its rare earth materials last year during trade disputes with the Trump administration.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also announced a new rare earth mineral processing center in South Carolina late last year. Similar projects are ongoing in Texas and elsewhere in the U.S.

“This is the first magnet made in the U.S. in 25 years — we’re ending China’s chokehold on our supply chain,” Bessent said at the time.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in front of a Ronald Reagan portrait

U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent says the U.S. is working to become independent on rare earth supplies. (Alex Wong/Getty Images / Getty Images)

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“They started it 18 months ago. The state of South Carolina — Governor McMaster was fantastic,” Bessent said. “They said it took them eight weeks to get permits. They couldn’t believe how fast it was. And this is President Trump’s all-hands-on-deck for this national security emergency.”

FOX Business’ Elizabeth MacDonald contributed to this report.

Business

Non-life insurers seen holding up better than life peers

Published

2 minutes ago

7 April 2026

NewsAdmin

Non-life insurers seen holding up better than life peers

Mumbai: Indian insurers across the spectrum of services are expected to report rather circumspect fourth-quarter earnings, with a meltdown in equities in the aftermath of the Iran war wiping out investment gains for bulge-bracket institutional holders of stock, brokerages said.

Industry profitability is expected to be muted due to market conditions, Emkay said in a report. It said the nearly 14% decline in the Nifty 50 during Q4 and a 40-basis point rise in bond yields weighed 4-5% negative economic variance for private life insurers and 1% negative for Life Insurance Corp (LIC)-the biggest local institutional holder of stock.

The annualised premium equivalent (APE) in FY26 at life insurers would expand in high single digits. This slowdown in life insurance demand is partly driven by equity market volatility and rising yield expectations, which have dampened demand for ULIPs and non-par guaranteed products.

However, Axis Max Life is expected to lead followed by Life Insurance Corporation of India.

HDFC Life is expected to report single-digit APE growth, with traction balanced across savings products, while value of new business (VNB) margins are likely to remain stable at around 24.5%. ICICI Prudential Life may see higher single-digit growth, with VNB margins at about 24%.

SBI Life is likely to report high single-digit APE growth in the quarter, with FY26 APE growth estimated at around 14% year-on-year, impacted by a slowdown in ULIP sales toward the latter half of March amid volatile equity markets. Its VNB margins are expected to remain stable at around 27%. LIC is likely to report a relatively stronger 13% growth, aided by group business, with VNB margins around 20% as it continues to pivot toward non-participating products.
In contrast, general and standalone health insurers are expected to deliver robust growth. ICICI Lombard General Insurance is likely to report 10-12% growth in gross written premium, supported by motor and health segments, although commercial lines may see a slowdown. Its combined ratio is expected to remain broadly flat at around 102.6%, weighed down by higher expense ratios. Star Health and Allied Insurance is expected to post strong double-digit growth, aided by improved affordability following GST rate changes and normalisation of earlier regulatory impacts. Both claims and combined ratios are likely to improve.