October 15 news:
Rare earth ore:
This week, mainstream rare earth carbonate was quoted at 60,100-60,300 yuan/mt. Miners maintained a stable shipment sentiment and showed little willingness to sell at low prices. Separation plants prioritized consuming raw materials on hand, with new purchases mostly limited to small rigid-demand orders, and actual transactions progressed at a slow pace. Rare earth chloride flakes held at 63,000-64,000 yuan/mt. Sellers' quotes remained unchanged, and downstream buyers made small replenishments according to production plans, lacking support from bulk transactions. Medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore traded at 247,000-248,000 yuan/mt. The tight ore supply pattern persisted, but the price gap between upstream and downstream had not yet been bridged, and many deals remained at the negotiation stage. Monazite hovered around 41,000-45,000 yuan/mt, with both supply and demand subdued and few actual transactions in the market, leaving prices without a clear direction for the time being.
Rare earth oxides:
This week, lanthanum oxide prices were at 5,500-6,000 yuan/mt, and cerium oxide prices were at 13,800-14,200 yuan/mt. Downstream buying interest for lanthanum and cerium products was insufficient, with shipments relying on long-term contract execution and sporadic rigid demand, leaving prices lacking upward momentum. As of today, Pr-Nd oxide prices rose to 743,000-745,000 yuan/mt. After reaching high levels, suppliers' quotes showed no signs of loosening, but metal plants maintained their existing production pace and had limited willingness to purchase at higher prices. Transactions were supported only by sporadic rigid demand, and wait-and-see sentiment deepened among both upstream and downstream players.
This week, dysprosium oxide prices adjusted to 1.4-1.42 million yuan/mt. Buyers and sellers in the dysprosium market showed clear divergence, with sellers cautious about concessions and buyers persistently pushing for lower prices, leaving trading at a stalemate. Terbium oxide was lowered to 6.36-6.4 million yuan/mt, consolidating at low levels with the decline temporarily slowing, but the weak atmosphere remained unchanged. Metal plants turned more conservative in procurement, and actual deals mostly settled at the low end of the range. Gadolinium oxide prices remained at 190,000-192,000 yuan/mt, with both supply and demand appearing calm, and suppliers mainly holding prices steady while waiting and watching. Holmium oxide prices adjusted to 647,000-653,000 yuan/mt, with the holmium segment strengthening notably and oxide gains leading the market, though whether transactions could follow remained to be seen. Erbium oxide prices were further raised to 690,000-705,000 yuan/mt, with quote centers continuing to climb. Suppliers kept shipments limited, and downstream buyers purchased as needed. Yttrium oxide (5N) was at 58,000-60,000 yuan/mt, and yttrium oxide (3N) at 28,000-30,000 yuan/mt, with mediocre demand and insufficient actual order follow-through, leaving prices lacking upward support.
Rare earth metals:
In the light rare earth segment, cerium metal market prices showed no significant fluctuations this week, with suppliers' quotes stable at 28,000-29,000 yuan/mt. Pr-Nd alloy prices edged up slightly overall this week before stabilizing. At the start of the week, Pr-Nd oxide prices rose slightly, and metal enterprises held their quotes steady. Mid-week, driven by purchasing from a top-tier player, Pr-Nd oxide quotes continued to climb and low-priced supply tightened further. Metal enterprises were forced to adjust their quotes upward in response to rising raw material costs. Toward the weekend, Pr-Nd oxide moved sideways, and the metal side lacked new adjustment drivers from either costs or transactions, so quotes remained unchanged. As of today, suppliers' quotes adjusted to 895,000-903,000 yuan/mt. Downstream magnetic material enterprises continued to purchase mainly on a rigid demand basis, with limited acceptance of raw materials after price increases. Actual order follow-up was slow, and overall transactions had yet to see volume growth.
For medium-heavy rare earths, dysprosium-iron alloy closed at 1.365-1.375 million yuan/mt, with prices edging down slightly this week, mainly affected by loosening oxide-side quotations and sluggish downstream inquiries. Metal enterprises' quotations moved down slightly in tandem, stabilizing late in the week. Terbium metal prices fell notably this week, closing at 7.95-8 million yuan/mt, mainly due to low transaction prices in tenders from large magnetic material plants. Pressure to cut prices on the metal side intensified, with declines notably larger than those for oxides. Near the weekend, the decline narrowed and quotations stopped falling and stabilized, but inquiries remained sluggish and actual transactions were sparse. Gadolinium-iron alloy prices edged down slightly this week, with suppliers adjusting quotations to 181,000-183,000 yuan/mt. Market inquiry activity was limited, downstream purchases remained rigid, and trading performance was mediocre. Holmium-iron alloy prices rose to 650,000-655,000 yuan/mt this week, mainly driven by tightening supply of low-priced oxide sources. Suppliers raised quotations slightly for consecutive days, but downstream inquiry and purchasing attitudes remained wait-and-see, with limited actual transaction follow-through.
NdFeB blanks:
Currently, NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) closed at 213~223 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 38M closed at 251~271 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H closed at 263~273 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (Ce) closed at 313~333 yuan/kg.
In terms of prices, NdFeB prices remained stable this week, mainly because stable raw material prices supported stable NdFeB prices. In terms of trading, NdFeB market transaction volume was mediocre this week, constrained by the global consumer environment. End-use demand growth was limited, leading to limited new orders at motor plants. Motor plants restocked on a rigid basis, and long-term contract deliveries were already sufficient to meet demand, resulting in limited spot orders and overall mediocre market transaction volume.
NdFeB scrap:
This week, Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 755-765 yuan/kg; dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 1,230-1,250 yuan/kg; terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 5,600-5,800 yuan/kg.
This week, scrap market prices were stable initially before rising, stabilizing at highs from mid-week. At the start of the week, affected by relatively small fluctuations in oxide prices, recycling enterprises made no notable adjustments to external purchase quotations. Pr-Nd scrap prices remained stable, scrap suppliers showed strong wait-and-see sentiment and low willingness to sell, and market trading was sluggish. Mid-week, driven by continuous increases in Pr-Nd oxide prices, recycling enterprises raised purchase quotations slightly in tandem. Pr-Nd scrap prices edged up, but willingness to chase higher prices for purchases was weak, limiting actual gains, and market trading performance was mediocre. As the weekend approaches, Pr-Nd oxide prices have stalled at highs, and recycling enterprises have not made significant adjustments to their purchase quotations, with Pr-Nd scrap prices stabilizing at highs. As suppliers' willingness to sell scrap has increased and available supply in the market has grown, actual trading activity has improved somewhat.
