Pr-Nd Prices Continue to Weaken, Medium-Heavy Rare Earth Market Trading Remains Weak [SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review]

September 25 News:

Rare Earth Ore:

Today, the price range for rare earth carbonate is 45,400-45,800 yuan/mt, monazite prices have been adjusted to 53,000-54,000 yuan/mt, and medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore prices are around 215,000-217,000 yuan/mt. Currently, some separation plants are gradually planning shutdowns, leading to a sluggish procurement atmosphere in the market. With low trading activity, the market price trend of rare earth ore is in the doldrums.

Rare Earth Oxides:

Currently, lanthanum oxide prices have slightly decreased to 4,300-4,700 yuan/mt, while cerium oxide prices have further increased to 11,000-11,200 yuan/mt this week. The fundamentals of cerium oxide remain tight, and most industry players believe there is still room for price increases. However, the procurement situation for lanthanum oxide is relatively weak, with prices showing a slight decline. This week, Pr-Nd oxide prices are in the doldrums. It is understood that downstream demand has not met expectations, with new orders in September significantly lower than in August. Suppliers are not optimistic about future market conditions, and some traders are selling at low prices, resulting in a temporary increase in shipments of Pr-Nd oxide. Consequently, Pr-Nd oxide prices have dropped to 560,000-565,000 yuan/mt. For medium-heavy rare earth, dysprosium oxide and terbium oxide prices continue to be in the doldrums. Dysprosium oxide prices show relatively small fluctuations, oscillating within the 1.61-1.62 million yuan/mt range during the week, while terbium oxide prices have further declined to 7.00-7.10 million yuan/mt. Holmium oxide inquiries remain sluggish this week, and its price trend continues to be in the doldrums, with prices pulling back to 540,000-550,000 yuan/mt. Erbium oxide prices have also slightly adjusted to the 334,000-335,000 yuan/mt range. Yttrium oxide prices remain stable at 48,000-50,000 yuan/mt, with no significant changes.

Rare Earth Metals:

This week, Pr-Nd alloy prices closed at 690,000-695,000 yuan/mt, continuing to weaken from the beginning of the week. This is mainly due to the approaching end of the stockpiling procurement window for downstream magnetic material enterprises, leading to a noticeable decrease in market inquiries compared to the start of the week. Downstream procurement demand is weak, with the market mostly engaging in just-in-time procurement, resulting in sparse actual trading volumes. Due to the lack of demand support, high-priced transactions for Pr-Nd alloy are difficult, and some metal enterprises have lowered their quotes, waiting to see the actual market transaction situation. However, market inquiries have not significantly improved despite the price reductions, and the wait-and-see sentiment in the market is strong. For medium-heavy rare earth, terbium metal prices closed at 8.75-8.8 million yuan/mt, and dysprosium-iron alloy prices closed at 1.56-1.57 million yuan/mt. Affected by the weak procurement demand from downstream magnetic material enterprises, overall market inquiries are poor, and metal enterprises' willingness to quote is low. Prices for heavy metals such as dysprosium and terbium have shown a slight decrease, with actual transactions remaining in the doldrums.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets

NdFeB blank prices: NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) was quoted at 200-210 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M was quoted at 246-256 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H was quoted at 250-260 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (ce) was quoted at 300-320 yuan/kg.

This week, the magnetic material market overall showed a pattern of stable prices but sluggish trading. Upstream raw material Pr-Nd oxide and Pr-Nd alloy prices were generally stable with a slight fall, providing basic cost support for magnetic material prices, but failed to effectively boost market activity. Market trading activity weakened, as the traditional September-October peak season stockpiling cycle was nearing its end, with previously accumulated rigid demand mostly released and new orders appearing somewhat weak. Meanwhile, weakness on the demand side gradually transmitted upstream to motor and magnetic material enterprises, leading to limited new orders and an overall quiet trading atmosphere in the market. For magnetic material exports, the peak demand season in the European market had passed, and subsequent incremental orders from overseas were expected to be relatively limited, further increasing market concerns that subsequent demand might continue to weaken.

Rare Earth Scrap:

This week, Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap was quoted at 575-585 yuan/kg; dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap was quoted at 1,620-1,643 yuan/kg; terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap was quoted at 5,439-5,550 yuan/kg.

This week, scrap market prices retreated after a rapid rise. Early in the week, large magnetic material enterprises tendered for Pr-Nd alloy, which increased trading activity in the oxide market and led to a slight price increase for scrap. However, as the procurement and stockpiling cycle for downstream magnetic material enterprises approached its end, overall trading in the oxide market was poor. Coupled with traders' weak willingness to hold inventory before the holiday and insufficient confidence in future prices, they began selling Pr-Nd oxide at lower prices, causing its market price to weaken further. Affected by this, recycling enterprises' procurement enthusiasm decreased, making it difficult to conclude deals at high prices for scrap, and scrap prices retreated after the rapid rise. The volume of scrap circulating in the market decreased compared to the beginning of the week, with most recycling enterprises focusing on consuming inventory.