Weak End-Use Demand Impacts Rare Earth Prices, Which Continue to Decline [SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review]

December 18 (SMM) -

Rare Earth Ore:

Today, the price range for rare earth carbonate was 46,400-46,700 yuan/mt, monazite prices adjusted to 5.2-5.374 yuan/mt, and medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore prices were around 205,000-207,000 yuan/mt. Recently, some miners reported severe losses on raw material costs for rare earth ore, and suppliers showed relatively low willingness to sell. However, demand from separation plants remained relatively weak, leading to sluggish trading in the rare earth ore market.

Rare Earth Oxides:

Recently, lanthanum oxide prices showed no significant fluctuations, remaining stable at 4,300-4,700 yuan/mt. Cerium oxide prices also held steady this week at 11,000-12,000 yuan/mt. Pr-Nd oxide prices continued to decline this week. Currently, the upstream supply side of Pr-Nd oxide has not improved, but the demand side has contracted more significantly. Many industry participants reported low inquiry activity from downstream alloy plants, with most making just-in-time procurement for restocking and pushing for lower prices. As a result, Pr-Nd oxide prices fell further to 574,000-576,000 yuan/mt this week. Dysprosium oxide prices remained weak this week, but the decline was relatively small due to continued procurement by leading large enterprises, with prices edging down to 1.35-1.36 million yuan/mt. Trading activity in the terbium oxide market remained poor, with some participants lacking confidence in the future market and actively offering at lower prices. Their offers quickly dropped to 6.09-6.13 million yuan/mt this week. Holmium oxide prices also declined with the market this week, adjusting to the range of 488,000-494,000 yuan/mt as of today. Erbium oxide prices saw a slight increase this week, adjusting to the range of 350,000-354,000 yuan/mt. Driven by market news, inquiry and procurement activity for yttrium oxide significantly improved, pushing prices up to 50,000-55,000 yuan/mt this week.

Rare Earth Metals:

This week, Pr-Nd alloy prices continued to decline, falling to 695,000-700,000 yuan/mt so far. Although a major magnetic material enterprise tendered for Pr-Nd alloy at the beginning of the week, the actual transaction price and volume were not ideal, lowering market transaction expectations. Meanwhile, downstream magnetic material enterprises adopted a cautious procurement approach, mostly making just-in-time procurement while pushing for lower prices. The overall trading atmosphere was sluggish, with some suppliers actively reducing prices to sell, leading to a continuous decline in Pr-Nd alloy prices. However, limited by cost pressure, the actual decline was constrained. In the medium-heavy rare earth market, terbium metal prices fell to 7.68-7.72 million yuan/mt due to weak market transactions, with some suppliers lacking confidence in the future market and actively reducing prices to sell, coupled with lower oxide costs. Dysprosium-iron alloy closed at 1.28-1.3 million yuan/mt, with relatively small overall price fluctuations. Influenced by market news, suppliers showed weak willingness to reduce prices for sales, and prices remained generally firm. Gadolinium-iron alloy prices also experienced relatively small fluctuations, maintaining at 153,000-156,000 yuan/mt.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets:

Currently, NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) closed at 198-208 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M closed at 244-254 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H closed at 248-258 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (ce) closed at 298-318 yuan/kg.

WoW, NdFeB prices dropped slightly. The core reason was the continuous decline in Pr-Nd oxide prices, which drove down magnetic material prices. In terms of transactions, market activity was moderate. On one hand, persistently high raw material prices led to strong wait-and-see sentiment among end-users. Additionally, due to previous panic stockpiling by end-users, magnetic material inventory remained relatively high, resulting in low willingness for further stockpiling. Overall, demand release slowed down, leading to moderate trading activity in the NdFeB market.

Rare Earth Scrap:

This week, Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 590-595 yuan/kg; dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 1,300-1,330 yuan/kg; terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap closed at 5,100-5,300 yuan/kg.

This week, scrap market prices continued to decline. This was mainly due to the continuous drop in Pr-Nd oxide market prices. At the same time, recycling enterprises had met their procurement targets, leading to decreased purchasing enthusiasm. They primarily pushed for lower prices and selective purchasing, causing a slight decrease in Pr-Nd scrap prices. However, due to tightening supply of Pr-Nd oxide, the decline in scrap prices was relatively limited. Overall market trading activity decreased WoW, but scrap circulation volume did not change significantly, and supply remained relatively sufficient. In summary, influenced by the continuous decline in Pr-Nd oxide prices and reduced purchase willingness among recycling enterprises, Pr-Nd scrap prices continued to trend lower.