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By a staff reporter

Rare earths miner Lynas Corp Ltd's shares have been placed in a trading halt, pending an update on its proposed deal with China Nonferrous Metal Mining (Group) Co (CNMMC).

State-owned CNMMC offered Lynas $US438.5 million ($A505 million) in cash for a 51.6 per cent stake in May, but the transaction has since run into regulatory trouble, with three subsequent delays in approval by the Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB).

The FIRB has set a new deadline of early October for its decision.

Lynas, which owns the Mt Weld rare earths mine in Western Australia, has previously flagged that it is working under funding contingencies, with enough cash to sustain operations through to the end of October.

"Lynas is well advanced in finalising interim funding, should interim funding be required to cover Lynas' cash flow requirements," the company said.

The miner also maintains that the CNMMC deal does not pose a threat to future pricing and marketing of rare metals, required for the manufacture of auto parts, flat screens and i-Pods.

Earlier this month Lynas executive chairman Nicholas Curtis told AAP that CNMMC was making a financial investment in Lynas.

"They are not seeking to buy our product and we are not marketing our product into China," Mr Curtis said.