China's top rare earth producer announced Friday it will gain control of 12 other firms in the sector to form a mega company.
China has made little change to this year's rare earth export quotas from 2011, in order to help maintain stable international market demand and supplies.
Many rare earth businesses have reduced or halted production in Guangdong due to sluggish market demand, according to industrial observers.
A proposal to form a massive rare earth corporation has been submitted to the State Council, China's Cabinet, and is highly likely to be approved soon, a leading domestic producer said Thursday.
The world's largest light rare earth producer is looking for opportunities overseas to develop heavy rare earth projects to diversify its products.
China's preeminent position in rare earths exports is likely to change after the US and Australia begin to produce the materials next year.
China plans to establish a global authoritative pricing index for rare earth metals in an effort to enhance its pricing power over the resources.
China is to set up a national pricing system for rare earth metals within the next month, in addition to its new trading platform. 
New cut for rare earths
China launched a trading platform for rare earth metals on Wednesday, as part of its efforts to regulate this sector. New cut for rare earths
A number of operations that illegally storing and processing up to 1,000 tons of rare earth valued at several hundred million yuan was discovered.
A recent trip to Jieyuan village in Ganzhou city of Jiangxi province revealed the huge environmental cost some places have had to pay for the economic development during the past decade. Jieyuan is 20 minutes' drive from the city and has about 2,100 residents, whose per capita income was 4,100 yuan ($650) in 2011. The village is famous for its limestone and related industry.
China will continue to protect its rare earth resources while solving disputes over its rare earth policies within the WTO framework.
Police in South China's Guangdong province have closed nine illegal rare earth mines in Longchuan county, a major rare earth reserve, over the past six months.
South Korea's rare earth imports from China surged last month due to a fall in import prices, Korean customs data showed Tuesday.
China cut mining rights for rare earths by about half to 65 nationwide to help the industry consolidate and create bigger producers.
China is spending billions of yuan buying domestically mined rare earth to build up its national strategic reserves, an official said.
China will introduce its first spot-trading platform for rare earths on Aug 8, Shanghai Securities News reported, in the country's latest attempt to improve price discovery for the commodities and subject the market to better regulation.
The central government plans to set up a large-scale rare earths conglomerate in Ganzhou, Jiangxi province.
A major rare earth industry regulator in China has issued a document prohibiting rare earth mining and smelting without its permission.
China will carefully study the request of the European Union, the United States and Japan asking the World Trade Organization to form a panel to resolve a dispute over rare earth "export restrictions," a spokesman for the Ministry of Commerce said Friday.
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