Trump plans to stockpile deep-sea metals to counter China, FT reports

April 12 (Reuters) - The Trump administration is drafting an executive order to enable the stockpiling of deep-sea metals to counter China's dominance in battery minerals and rare earth supply chains, the Financial Times reported on Saturday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Under the plans, the stockpile would "create large quantities ready and available on U.S. territory to be used in the future", in case of a conflict with China that might constrain imports of metals and rare earths, the report added.

Last week, China placed some rare earth elements under export restrictions as part of its response to President Donald Trump's tariff package, potentially cutting the U.S. off from minerals vital to everything from smartphones to electric car batteries.

The stockpile is being considered as part of a broader push to fast-track deep-sea mining applications under U.S. law, and to create onshore processing capacity, the report added.

China produces around 90% of the world's refined rare earths, a group of 17 elements used across the defense, electric vehicle, clean energy and electronics industries. The U.S. imports most of its rare earths, and most come from China.

The White House and China's foreign ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comments.