Arctic Rare Earth Rush: Why Investors Are Loading Up on REMX and SETM

The Arctic is quietly becoming the new battleground for critical minerals. As climate change thaws Greenland and melts Arctic ice, vast untapped reserves of rare earths—essential for defense, EVs, chips, and clean energy—are suddenly within reach. China has long dominated this supply chain, but Trump’s return has accelerated a strategic pivot.

Here’s the play: The U.S. is actively courting alternatives. Trump has already dangled deals with Australia, Malaysia, Cambodia, and Japan to break China’s stranglehold on rare earth exports. Meanwhile, Greenland is emerging as the dark horse. Marc Lanteigne, an Arctic expert at Norway’s University of Tromsø, notes that melting ice has made mining “long considered impractical” finally economically viable.

The ETF Plays

Investor interest in Arctic rare earth plays has spiked since Trump took office. Two ETFs are catching serious attention:

VanEck Rare Earth/Strategic Metals (REMX)

• Tracks 29 rare earth/strategic metal stocks
• $1.5B in AUM, 0.58% fee
• Geographic split: China 28.31%, Australia 24.41%, U.S. 19.07%
• 52.3% large-cap heavy
• Performance: +61.76% (3-month), +45.14% (1-year)
• Volume: ~1.5M shares daily

Sprott Critical Materials ETF (SETM)

• 87 holdings across critical minerals
• $163.4M AUM, 0.65% fee
• Tilted North American: Canada 37.7%, Australia 25.7%, U.S. 19.8%
• 15.61% rare earth allocation
• Performance: +44.34% (3-month), +41.99% (1-year)
• Volume: ~182K shares daily

The Thesis

Demand for critical minerals is accelerating. With geopolitical tension pushing supply chain decoupling, diversification away from China isn’t just buzzword—it’s policy. ETFs offer broad exposure without picking individual stocks. REMX leans China-heavy (hedging on both sides), while SETM bets harder on Western alternatives.

Both have posted 40%+ gains in the past year. The question isn’t whether rare earths will stay hot—it’s whether you’re positioned before the rest of retail catches on.