The Democratic Republic of Congo will lift its cobalt export ban on October 16, replacing it with an annual quota system. The country’s strategic minerals regulator, ARECOMS, announced that miners will be allowed to ship up to 18,125 tonnes for the remainder of 2025, with annual caps of 96,600 tonnes in 2026 and 2027. Congo, which produced about 70% of global cobalt output last year, suspended exports in February after prices fell to a nine-year low. This policy shift aims to reduce oversupply, stabilize prices, and assert greater control over the country’s strategic mineral wealth.