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Yahoo
a few seconds ago
- Yahoo
China's exports of rare earth magnets to the U.S. skyrocket in June
BEIJING (Reuters) -China's exports of rare earth magnets to the United States in June soared by more than six times from May, a sharp recovery in the flow of critical minerals key to electric vehicles and wind turbines after a Sino-US trade deal. Outbound shipments to the United States from the world's largest producer of rare earth magnets surged to 353 metric tons in June, up 660% from May, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday. That came after pacts reached in June to resolve issues around shipments of rare earth minerals and magnets to the United States, with chipmaker Nvidia's plan to resume sales of its H20 AI chips to China as part of the talks. China, which provides more than 90% of global supply of rare earth magnets, decided in early April to add several rare earth items to its export restriction list in retaliation for U.S. tariffs. The subsequent sharp falls in shipments in April and May, due to the lengthy times required to secure export licences had rattled global suppliers, forcing some automakers outside China to halt partial production due to shortage of rare earths. In total, China exported 3,188 tons of rare earth permanent magnets last month, up 157.5% from 1,238 tons in May, although the June volume was still 38.1% lower than the corresponding month in 2024. Shipments of magnets are likely to recover further in July as more exporters obtained licences in June, analysts said. During the first half of 2025, exports of rare earth magnets fell 18.9% on the year to 22,319 tons. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Bloomberg
2 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Why the World Is Haunted by This White House
Donald Trump is the 14th US president of my lifetime, and he claims a unique distinction. Through all the previous White House incumbencies, months went by when even educated, informed British, German, Indian, Brazilian, French or Australian people did not give a moment's thought to America's leader. Sure, we noticed when a president visited our country or started a war or got impeached or had an incredibly beautiful wife who dressed wonderfully. We knew that the US was the richest and most influential nation on earth, and that on the big things we needed to play follow-my-leader. But even somebody like me, who lived in the US for a couple of years, and visited regularly until January 2025, did not lie awake nights wondering what our neighborhood superpower might do next.
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Could Buying Lockheed Martin Stock Today Set You Up for Life?
Key Points The medium-term outlook for defense spending is positive, with both the U.S. and other NATO countries looking to ramp up investment. Lockheed Martin is well positioned to benefit from President Trump's defense budget. The company's execution issues have troubled it in recent years, and many defense companies have faced margin pressures. 10 stocks we like better than Lockheed Martin › There's a lot to like about defense giant Lockheed Martin's (NYSE: LMT) stock, but is it enough to make it an investment that investors can feel comfortable with, knowing it will generate life-changing long-term returns? The bulls' case for Lockheed Martin The investment case for the stock is relatively easy to understand. It's based on the enduring need for defense equipment and services, as well as its increasing importance in an age of geopolitical conflict. Not only is President Donald Trump seeking to ramp up the defense budget to a record $1.01 trillion, but NATO has also been enlarged, and its members have recently agreed to invest 5% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on core defense requirements as well as defense and security-related spending by 2035. Moreover, much of the spending, at least in the U.S., focuses on missile defense and tactical missiles, which Lockheed Martin specializes in. Indeed, discussing the matter on an earnings call in April, CEO Jim Taiclet said, "Our 21st century security strategy, where we integrate existing and new satellites, aircraft, ships, missile launchers, and command and control systems with constantly upgradable digital technologies, was tailor-made for [missile defense system] Golden Dome." Furthermore, Lockheed Martin's current backlog of $173 billion represents 2.3 years' worth of sales based on the midpoint of management's guidance for full-year 2025 revenue. It's also worth noting that its core customer, the U.S. government, is a highly reliable payer. Turning to valuation, the midpoint of management's guidance range calls for $23.15 in earnings per share and $6.7 billion in free cash flow (FCF). Based on the current price, it would put the stock at 17.2 times earnings and 16.3 times FCF. They are attractive valuations for a company with such solid growth prospects. So is it that case closed? As usual, investing is rarely that simple. The bears' case for Lockheed Martin The negative case for the stock can be seen in three interrelated arguments: Lockheed Martin's execution challenges in recent years, notably with its most important single program, the F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, have damaged confidence in its ability to produce "long-run franchise" programs. Lockheed Martin, like many other defense contractors, including Boeing and RTX, has struggled to achieve margin expansion in recent years, as the U.S. government has become more adept at negotiating contracts, particularly through the use of fixed-price contracts. The current environment is highly conducive to defense spending, but that doesn't guarantee that it will be the case in the future. Lockheed Martin's execution and margin challenges The company's execution challenges are encapsulated in two events this year. First, a Department of Defense description of the proposed 2026 defense budget included reducing F-35 procurement. There's little doubt why procurement has been reduced. The DOD is focusing on making existing F-35s mission-capable (able to perform a core mission) rather than procuring new planes. According to just 51.5% of F-35s were mission-capable in 2024. High-profile delays and issues on the Technology Refresh 3 (TR3) on the F-35 have reduced that percentage. In addition, the cost overrun on the F-35 has been so significant that the military is now considering flying it less to reduce costs. These issues damage confidence in Lockheed Martin, not least as it faces upfront costs on programs in expectation of turning them into "long-run franchises." As such, there are questions about its ability to grow margins in the future. The second issue is the loss of the next-generation air dominance (NGAD) contract to Boeing, a decision highly likely to have been influenced by the issues with the F-35. Long-term defense spending This isn't the place to enter a detailed debate over the sustainability of government spending. Still, it's worth noting that if you are buying defense stocks based on the security of long-term growth in spending from the U.S. government (which currently accounts for two-thirds of NATO spending), then you will be comfortable with the following chart of U.S. public debt to GDP and the idea that the possibility of rising debt levels won't constrain spending on defense and other matters in the future. In addition, it's extremely difficult to predict where global defense priorities will be over the next few years, let alone a lifetime. Is Lockheed Martin stock a buy? On balance, defense stocks appear slightly undervalued; however, Lockheed Martin's issues with the F-35 may not make it the best way to capitalize on a positive medium-term outlook for defense spending. As such, Lockheed Martin isn't likely to be a stock that investors can make a life-changing investment in. Should you buy stock in Lockheed Martin right now? Before you buy stock in Lockheed Martin, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Lockheed Martin wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $652,133!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,056,790!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,048% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 15, 2025 Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends Lockheed Martin and RTX. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Could Buying Lockheed Martin Stock Today Set You Up for Life? was originally published by The Motley Fool
