Rare Earth Prices Fluctuated, Medium-Heavy Rare Earth Prices Rose [SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review]

September 4 (SMM) -

Rare Earth Ores:

Today, the price range of rare earth carbonate stood at 48,200-48,400 yuan/mt, while monazite prices adjusted to 56,000-57,000 yuan/mt, and medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore prices hovered around 226,000-228,000 yuan/mt. Currently, ion-adsorption ore sales faced difficulties, with most separation enterprises primarily consuming existing inventory, resulting in sluggish market activity.

Rare Earth Oxides:

Currently, lanthanum oxide prices remained stable at 4,300-4,900 yuan/mt, while cerium oxide prices held up well this week at 10,700-11,000 yuan/mt amid tightening supply, with prices edging up. Pr-Nd oxide prices continued to weaken this week, as most market participants adopted a wait-and-see sentiment due to external factors, leading to significantly reduced procurement intensity. Although separation plants maintained firm offers, some traders began actively selling at lower prices, pulling back Pr-Nd oxide prices to 595,000-598,000 yuan/mt within the week. In the medium-heavy rare earth segment, dysprosium oxide prices rose this week due to procurement by leading manufacturers, climbing to 1.63-1.64 million yuan/mt. Terbium oxide prices surged rapidly within the week to 7.4-7.46 million yuan/mt, driven by strong procurement enthusiasm amid expectations of tighter future supply. Holmium oxide and erbium oxide saw noticeably improved inquiry activity this week, with prices rising to 570,000-575,000 yuan/mt and 336,000-340,000 yuan/mt, respectively. Yttrium oxide prices remained stable at 48,000-50,000 yuan/mt with no significant fluctuations.

Rare Earth Metals:

This week, Pr-Nd alloy prices settled at 730,000-740,000 yuan/mt, weakening slightly from the week’s start. This was mainly due to sluggish spot market inquiries and lower tender prices from major magnetic material enterprises, which dampened bullish sentiment, hindered price increases, and made high-priced metal transactions difficult. Metal producers anticipated weaker market transactions, with some suppliers cutting offers and actively selling. However, leading metal enterprises maintained firm quotes, awaiting Pr-Nd alloy tenders from major magnetic material players, showing limited willingness to sell at lower prices. In the medium-heavy rare earth segment, terbium metal settled at 9.15-9.2 million yuan/mt, while dysprosium-iron alloy prices reached 1.58-1.6 million yuan/mt. Expectations of reduced supply in the medium-heavy rare earth oxide market drove rapid price increases, with dysprosium and terbium-based metals seeing notable offer hikes under cost support from oxides. However, the rapid price surge led to strong wait-and-see sentiment among downstream magnetic material enterprises, resulting in a stalemate in actual market transactions.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets

NdFeB blank prices: NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) closed at 203-213 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M closed at 249-259 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H closed at 253-263 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (ce) closed at 303-323 yuan/kg.

This week, rare earth magnetic material market quotations remained generally stable, with trading activity continuing to recover, mainly benefiting from the stabilization of upstream rare earth raw material prices, as magnetic material enterprises gradually resumed quotations and normal order-taking. Although raw material prices stabilized, they remained at historically high levels, providing strong cost support for magnetic material plants. Meanwhile, end-users increased parts procurement and production efforts as inventories were gradually consumed, transmitting to the magnetic material sector and bringing new orders, significantly improving market trading atmosphere. Procurement-wise, magnetic material plants mostly restocked as needed to maintain reasonable raw material inventory levels, with some enterprises adopting various methods to ensure supply chain stability. Overall, the market exhibited a tight supply-demand balance.

Rare Earth Scrap:

This week, Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 616-627 yuan/kg; dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 1,620-1,643 yuan/kg; terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 5,439-5,550 yuan/kg.

This week, scrap market prices initially jumped and then pulled back, mainly influenced by oxide market transactions. Pr-Nd oxide market prices continued to weaken due to reduced inquiries, with overall weak purchase willingness from recycling enterprises. Scrap procurement slowed down, with most traders suspending quotations and adopting a wait-and-see approach. As prices continued to decline, suppliers' willingness to sell scrap strengthened, but recycling enterprises remained cautious in procurement due to tax invoice issues, showing weak willingness to purchase at high prices, leading to a noticeable decline in scrap prices. Market trading was generally subdued, with reduced scrap circulation. Overall, due to weak oxide market trading, recycling enterprises slowed procurement, and market sentiment was dominated by wait-and-see. In the short term, scrap prices are unlikely to decline significantly, influenced by the tightening supply-demand pattern in the oxide market.