News articles 9 April 2025

Imports of rare earth elements saw 30% drop in 2024

In 2024, a total of 12 900 tonnes of rare earth elements (REE+) were imported to the EU, marking a decrease of 29.3% compared with 2023.

At the same time, 5 500 tonnes of rare earth elements were exported from the EU, a drop of only 0.8%.

Rare earth elements are a group of 17 specialty metals with a high supply risk and of significant economic importance, used in various high-tech applications.

Source dataset: ds-045409

Almost half of rare earth elements imports came from China

In 2024, China was the largest partner for imports of rare earth elements, accounting for 46.3% of the total weight of imports, or 6 000 tonnes. China was followed by Russia with 28.4% of imports, or 3 700 tonnes, and Malaysia, contributing 19.9% of the imports, or 2 600 tonnes.

Source dataset: ds-045409

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Methodological notes

Rare earth elements (REE+) are a set of 17 chemical elements in the periodic table, specifically the 15 lanthanides plus scandium and yttrium. They are used in everyday technologies like mobile phones and computers and also in advanced medical technologies like MRIs, laser scalpels and even some cancer drugs. In defence applications, they are used in satellite communications, guidance systems and aircraft structures. They are critical in several green technologies, especially those that support net zero carbon emissions goals, like wind turbines and electric vehicles. Rare earth elements defined by the combined nomenclature (CN) classification are the following:

28053010 - Intermixtures or interalloys of rare-earth metals, scandium and yttrium.
28053040 - Scandium, of a purity by weight of >=95% (excluding intermixtures and interalloys).
28053080 - Rare-earth metals, scandium and yttrium, of a purity by weight of <95% (excluding intermixtures and interalloys).
28461000 - Cerium compounds.
28469030 - Scandium compounds, inorganic or organic.
28469090 - Compounds of mixtures of rare-earth metals, yttrium and scandium, inorganic or organic.
28053021 - Cerium and lanthanum, of a purity by weight of >=95% (excl. intermixtures and interalloys).
28053029 - Praseodymium, neodymium and samarium, of a purity by weight of >=95% (excluding intermixtures and interalloys).
28053031 - Gadolinium, terbium and dysprosium, of a purity by weight of >=95% (excluding intermixtures and interalloys).
28053039 - Europium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium, lutetium and yttrium, of a purity by weight of >=95% (excluding intermixtures and interalloys).
28469040 - Lanthanum compounds, inorganic or organic.
28469050 - Compounds of praseodymium, neodymium or samarium, inorganic or organic.
28469060 - Compounds of gadolinium, terbium or dysprosium, inorganic or organic.
28469070 - Compounds of europium, holmium, erbium, thulium, ytterbium, lutetium or yttrium, inorganic or organic.