Pr-Nd Prices Rose Significantly, Medium-Heavy Rare Earth in the Doldrums [SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review]

December 25 (SMM) -

Rare Earth Ore:

Today, the price range for rare earth carbonate was 47,900-48,200 yuan/mt, monazite prices adjusted to 5.3-5.45 yuan/mt, and medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore prices were around 209,000-210,000 yuan/mt. Recently, separation plants' purchase willingness remained weak, ore suppliers faced significant difficulties in shipments, and some market participants reported that the supply of ion-adsorption ore would remain ample, while the operating rate of separation plants was expected to see no significant increase.

Rare Earth Oxides:

Recently, lanthanum oxide prices showed no significant fluctuations, remaining stable at 4,300-4,700 yuan/mt, and cerium oxide prices also continued to stabilize at 11,000-12,000 yuan/mt this week. Pr-Nd oxide prices experienced a retreat after a rapid rise this week. At the beginning of the week, amid tightening supply and positive news, most suppliers quickly raised their offers for Pr-Nd oxide. With low-priced spot cargo hard to find, Pr-Nd oxide prices rapidly rose to 594,000-597,000 yuan/mt. However, due to persistently weak downstream demand and worsening losses on raw material costs for alloy plants, Pr-Nd oxide prices dropped back slightly to 592,000-595,000 yuan/mt. The medium-heavy rare earth market remained sluggish this week. Dysprosium oxide prices continued to decline this week, with some participants expressing a pessimistic outlook on future prices. Suppliers continuously made shipments to realize cash, leading to a further price reduction to 1.33-1.35 million yuan/mt this week. Terbium oxide prices remained weak. Due to persistently sluggish market demand, its offers were further reduced to 6.02-6.06 million yuan/mt this week. Holmium oxide market prices saw relatively small fluctuations during the week, remaining stable within the range of 488,000-494,000 yuan/mt. Spot inventory of erbium oxide was low, and its prices continued to rise this week, adjusting to the range of 353,000-357,000 yuan/mt. Yttrium oxide prices did not continue last week's trend but instead stabilized, holding steady at 50,000-55,000 yuan/mt this week.

Rare Earth Metals:

This week, Pr-Nd alloy prices saw a significant increase. As of now, Pr-Nd alloy prices were raised to 715,000-725,000 yuan/mt. At the beginning of the week, due to tightening spot supply of oxides, procurement costs for metal enterprises rose significantly. For cost reasons, metal enterprises were forced to raise their offers. However, due to few new downstream orders and limited acceptance of high-priced metals, high-priced transactions for Pr-Nd alloy were difficult. After the rapid rise, prices stabilized under cost support, but actual transaction performance was poor. In the medium-heavy rare earth market, dysprosium-iron alloy was reported at 1.28-1.3 million yuan/mt. Due to poor market inquiries, metal enterprises had weak willingness to actively offer quotes, and prices showed no significant change. The price of terbium metal dropped to 7.48-7.53 million yuan/mt, influenced by lower oxide costs and suppliers reducing prices to clear inventory. The price of gadolinium-iron alloy fluctuated within a relatively small range, remaining at 153,000-156,000 yuan/mt.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets

Currently, the price of NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) was quoted at 199-209 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M at 245-255 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H at 249-259 yuan/kg; and NdFeB blank 45SH (ce) at 299-319 yuan/kg.

This week, NdFeB prices rose slightly, primarily driven by a rapid increase in the price of Pr-Nd oxide, the raw material for NdFeB, which pushed up magnetic material prices. Market activity remained moderate, as high raw material prices led to strong wait-and-see sentiment among end-users. Additionally, due to previous panic stockpiling, end-user magnetic material inventories were relatively high. As year-end approached, rigid stockpiling demand weakened, keeping overall market activity subdued.

Rare Earth Scrap:

This week, the price of Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap was quoted at 600-610 yuan/kg; dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap at 1,300-1,330 yuan/kg; and terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap at 5,100-5,300 yuan/kg.

Scrap market prices retreated after a rapid rise, mainly seen in Pr-Nd scrap prices. Early in the week, recycling enterprises raised their purchase offers in response to a significant increase in Pr-Nd oxide market prices. However, due to the rapid price surge, recycling enterprises adopted a wait-and-see approach, leading to divergent quotations. As transaction prices for Pr-Nd oxide declined and some recyclers suspended quotes after meeting procurement targets, scrap market prices pulled back slightly. Nevertheless, scrap supply remained ample, with overall circulation stable, and market activity maintained at normal levels.