SHANGHAI, Jun. 12 (SMM) – Rumor has it that all the nine tenders issued by China’s State Reserve Bureau (SRB), a national stockpiling agency, on June 7, have ended with no successful bidders. 

The failure is probably because prices offered by the SRB do not match potential suppliers’ bottom prices, SMM assumes. 

China Rare Earth Export Recovery Unlikely to Sustain in June

Most rare earth producers in China are still struggling around costs, given current market prices, SMM learned.

Based on past experience, the SRB is highly unlikely to resume tender issuance in the same month tender was issued. Downstream buyers have delayed purchases in recent two weeks against soft demand. Rare earth prices have seen dramatic gains earlier, fuelled mainly by market speculation over commercial and state rare earth buying. 

In this context, prices for some classes of rare earth have already given back some previous gains, and further downward corrections are expected, SMM expects.

The SRB offered to buy 3,870 tonnes of rare earth on June 7 via tender.

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