Two US rare earth producers are in a dispute over trade secret theft

老虎证券2026/05/28 09:26

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Both of these rare earth producers are supported by the federal government under the leadership of President Trump. On the 27th local time, it was reported that Mountain Pass Materials Company filed a lawsuit in Texas last week against USA Rare Earth, accusing the latter of "stealing" its technology developed for permanent magnets. In court documents, Mountain Pass Materials claimed that USA Rare Earth had "repeatedly failed to achieve commercial and performance goals and has now resorted to technology theft." The core dispute in this lawsuit centers on a patented technology owned by Mountain Pass Materials aimed at improving the "coercivity"—that is, the resistance to demagnetization—of magnets. The company accused a former employee who joined USA Rare Earth last year of disclosing related technology to the new employer, stating that these technologies are the result of "years" of work and "millions of dollars" in investment. Mountain Pass Materials further alleged that USA Rare Earth has a habit of recruiting employees from other companies and "then misappropriating trade secrets through these employees." USA Rare Earth responded by saying that Mountain Pass Materials' lawsuit "misrepresents our company, culture, and people" and will be "vigorously defended." In July last year, the U.S. government acquired a 15% stake in Mountain Pass Materials and signed a 10-year agreement with provisions such as minimum product pricing. Mountain Pass Materials has also signed a magnet supply agreement with General Motors. On the 13th of this month, Mountain Pass Materials CEO James Litinsky stated that the company’s Mountain Pass rare earth mine in California will "soon" begin rare earth separation operations. USA Rare Earth's planned mining operations are still in the early stages, targeting large-scale commercial production by 2028. This year, the company received about $1.6 billion in conditional funding from the U.S. government for its planned rare earth mine in Texas and a magnet plant in Oklahoma.

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On October 9th, shares of smart sensing technology company Oxford Metrics OMG1.L fell by 14% to 30 pence, marking their lowest level since March 2015. The company expects an adjusted operating loss of between £500,000 and £3.9 million for fiscal 2026, while the market consensus was for a profit of £3 million. Oxford Metrics noted that key markets served by its motion capture division, Vicon, remain soft, with R&D funding under pressure and major projects in the industrial vision and measurement systems business facing delays. The company has acquired the assets of Move AI to enhance Vicon’s AI-based motion capture technology and reach more customers and markets. Year-to-date, the share price has dropped about 45%, including the decline on the day. (For the convenience of non-English speakers, Reuters has automated translation of its reports into various other languages. As automated translation may be inaccurate or lack necessary context, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of the translated text and provides it as a convenience only. Reuters is not responsible for any damage or loss caused by the use of automated translation features.)

路透社•2026/10/09 08:21

BUZZ-European telecom stocks fall after SpaceX reaches spectrum agreement

On Thursday, SpaceX SPCX.O announced it had reached an agreement (link) to acquire a portfolio of low-frequency band spectrum licenses across the United States, which will enable Starlink Mobile to become a major telecommunications operator in the US. Following this news, shares of European telecom service providers fell by 3% to 7%. Deutsche Telekom DTEGn.DE, which holds a 54% stake in T-Mobile US TMUS.O, saw its share price drop by 7%, set for its biggest single-day loss since June 2023. “Deutsche Telekom is negatively impacted as competition in the US market intensifies,” according to a local trader. This acquisition could potentially allow SpaceX to provide direct mobile communication services to smartphones from space in the future. Scotiabank pointed out, “SpaceX’s acquisition of spectrum in the US today makes the threat of hybrid networks more realistic, though network capacity and deployment economics in dense markets have yet to be validated.” Spanish operator Telefonica TEF.MC, France's Orange SA ORAN.PA, and UK’s Vodafone VOD.L all declined by about 3%. The European STOXX 600 telecom index .SXKP dropped 2.8%. (For the convenience of non-English speakers, Reuters automatically translates its reports into several other languages. Since these automated translations may contain errors or lack the needed context, Reuters does not guarantee the accuracy of automated translation texts and provides them for reader convenience only. Reuters bears no responsibility for any harm or loss due to use of automated translation.)

路透社•2026/10/09 08:11

10-Yr Benchmark Govt Yields - U.S. vs Other Nations

Current Spread in Yield Basis Points U.S. 5.243 % Australia 5.345 % 10.2 Belgium 4.295 % -94.8 Canada 3.929 % -131.4 Denmark 3.260 % -198.4 France 4.816 % -42.7 Germany 3.474 % -177.0 Italy 4.540 % -70.3 Japan 3.017 % -222.6 Netherlands 3.577 % -166.6 Spain 4.064 % -117.9 Sweden 3.205 % -203.8 U.K. 5.427 % 18.4 Source: Tullett Prebon via FactSet (END) Dow Jones Newswires October 09, 2026 04:10 ET (08:10 GMT)

Dow Jones•2026/10/09 08:10

TRexBio Prices $116.7 Million Initial Public Offering

04:10 AM EDT, 10/09/2026 (MT Newswires) -- TRexBio (TRXB) said Thursday it priced its initial public offering of roughly 8.3 million common shares at $14 per share. The company expects to raise roughly $116.7 million in gross proceeds from the sale, and its stock is expected to begin trading Friday on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (NDAQ) under the ticker symbol TRXB, the company said. Underwriters have a 30-day option to buy up to an additional 1.25 million shares, and the transaction is expected to close Oct. 13, pending customary conditions, TRexBio said.

MT newswire•2026/10/09 08:10