[SMM Rare Earth Morning Meeting Summary] End-use demand weakens, market prices decline slightly

Published: May 21, 2025 09:32

Save

[SMM Rare Earth Morning Meeting Summary: Sluggish End-use Demand Leads to Slight Decline in Market Prices] Yesterday, prices of rare earth oxides continued to decline slightly. Factories were not very active in offering goods, while the purchasing atmosphere in the downstream sector remained sluggish. Some traders took the initiative to lower prices to sell their goods, leading to a downward shift in the center of the overall market transaction prices.

》Check SMM's rare earth quotations, data, and market analysis

》Subscribe to view historical price trends of SMM's metal spot cargo

SMM News on May 21:

Rare Earth Ores

Prices: The price of rare earth carbonate is approximately 35,100 yuan/mt, monazite is priced at around 41,300 yuan/mt, and the price of medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore (standard grade) is about 189,500 yuan/mt.

Supply and Demand: Recently, rare earth ore prices have increased compared to the previous period. Miners are more reluctant to sell at higher prices, resulting in lower enthusiasm for shipping goods.

Rare Earth Oxides

Prices: The quotation range for Pr-Nd oxide is approximately 425,000-427,000 yuan/mt, the mainstream quotation range for dysprosium oxide is 1.62-1.64 million yuan/mt, and the quotation for terbium oxide has been adjusted to around 7.15-7.18 million yuan/mt.

Supply and Demand: Yesterday, prices of rare earth oxides continued to decline slightly. Factories showed low enthusiasm for offering goods, while the downstream purchasing atmosphere remained sluggish. Some traders actively reduced prices to ship goods, leading to a downward shift in the overall transaction price center of the market.

Rare Earth Metals

Prices: The mainstream quotation range for Pr-Nd alloy is 527,000-529,000 yuan/mt, the quotation for dysprosium-iron alloy is approximately 1.58-1.59 million yuan/mt, and the quotation for terbium metal is around 8.85-8.9 million yuan/mt.

Supply and Demand: Yesterday, metal factories exhibited a strong wait-and-see sentiment. Some suppliers chose to quote prices based on corresponding oxides. However, downstream magnetic material enterprises had low confidence in the future market, with weak inquiry and purchase willingness. Some market participants believed that rare earth prices would still experience a slight pullback.

NdFeB Blanks

Prices: NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) is quoted at 140-150 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M is priced at 186-196 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H is quoted at 190-200 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (Ce) is priced at 240-260 yuan/kg.

Supply and Demand: Yesterday, metal market prices dropped slightly. Although the inquiry activity in the magnetic material market increased somewhat, actual trading volume did not improve significantly due to the influence of end-use demand.

NdFeB Scrap

Prices: The price of Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 457-462 yuan/kg; the price of dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 1,606-1,628 yuan/kg; the price of terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 5,335-5,445 yuan/kg.

Supply and Demand: Yesterday, due to the slight decline in oxide market prices, the price of Pr-Nd recycled from scrap also decreased. Currently, the scrap market is in a state of weak supply and demand.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

21 hours ago

Trading Perspective: The U.S. $12 Billion Project Vault – A National-Level Risk Hedging for the EV Supply Chain

For NEVs, the core impact of Project Vault does not lie in how much it drives up mineral prices in the short term, but in the following: improved certainty of subsidy compliance, reduced supply disruption risks at key nodes, and the formation of a more stable structural price spread between the compliant and non-compliant supply chains.

21 hours ago

Feb 2, 2026 09:47

Cyclic Materials to Build Rare Earth Recycling Plant in South Carolina

[SMM Flash: Cyclic Materials to Build Rare Earth Recycling Plant in South Carolina] Canadian rare earth and metal recycling enterprise Cyclic Materials announced plans to invest over $82 million to construct a rare earth recycling plant in South Carolina. This facility is the company's second announced synergistic plant in the US, with an initial capacity to process 2,000 mt of magnetic material, and the company plans to increase its annual processing capacity to 6,000 mt. The company also stated that the new plant is initially expected to produce 600 mt of mixed rare earth oxides annually, with future capacity potentially expandable to 1,800 mt to meet growing market demand.

Feb 2, 2026 09:47

Jan 30, 2026 18:24

Chile Unveils National Critical Minerals Strategy Amid Global Demand Surge

Chile has released its National Critical Minerals Strategy, clearly positioning itself as a stable supplier of minerals. Currently, driven by artificial intelligence, the development of new technologies, and the energy transition, global demand for these critical minerals continues to grow. The announcement of this strategy holds particular significance in the weeks before President Boric leaves office, highlighting Chile’s intention to transition from over-reliance on the copper industry toward adapting to a decarbonized economy and achieving resource diversification. Chile has identified 14 critical minerals, specifically covering copper, lithium, molybdenum, rhenium, cobalt, rare earths, antimony, selenium, tellurium, gold, silver, iron ore, boron, and iodine. Based on Chile’s current position in the global market, these 14 minerals are categorized into three groups: The first category includes copper, lithium, molybdenum, and rhenium. Their respective shares in global supply are 23%, 20.4%, 14.6%, and 46.8%, and other major economies have also designated these minerals as critical. The second category consists of minerals that are currently not produced or only produced in small quantities, including cobalt, rare earths, antimony, selenium, and tellurium. The third category comprises minerals already produced domestically in Chile with the potential to expand their role in the global value chain, such as gold, silver, iron ore, boron, and iodine.

Jan 30, 2026 18:24