20,000 tonnes of Rare Earths smuggled out of China in 2008
 

According to an anonymous Chinese government official about 20,000 tonnes of rare earth was smuggled from China in 2008. Customs statistics showed that last year the country exported 39,500 tonnes of rare earth oxide. That means smuggling accounted for one-third of the total volume of rare earth leaving China, the newspaper said.

The Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has been mulling plans to curb the smuggling of rare earth, according to an unnamed expert participated in the drafting of the "Rare-earth Industry Development Plan 2009-2015". He said the authorities would introduce regulations and policies to punish rare-earth smuggling. (China Mining September 15 2009).