SMM Rare Earth Afternoon Trading Comment on September 14

This week, rare earth prices outside China remained broadly stable. Neodymium oxide and terbium oxide edged lower, while terbium metal bucked the trend and moved higher, reflecting rigid demand support for medium-heavy rare earths. In news, USAR's magnet plant in the US broke ground and integrated heavy rare earth resources from Brazil, with recycling projects advancing in parallel. In Brazil, IMC, BRE, and Viridis made intensive metallurgical breakthroughs at their ionic clay projects. On the financing side, Aclara secured a $750 million loan from the Export-Import Bank of the US, and JOGMEC increased its investment in Brazilian exploration, marking a shift in overseas supply chain competition toward "capital lock-in and delivery of separated capacity." Diversification of non-China supply is accelerating, but in the short term it still relies on policy support.

[Pr-Nd series stops rising and turns stable with a weak balance, dysprosium series temporarily stable while terbium continues to decline, magnetic material activity remains moderate] Last week, Pr-Nd oxide consolidated within a narrow range, with upstream and downstream temporarily in a weak balance, while demand-side inquiries and purchases remained cautious; dysprosium oxide quotes were stable, market inquiries saw limited changes, and transactions were mainly small orders for immediate needs; terbium oxide continued to decline, with higher prices still struggling to gain acceptance, suppliers increasing shipments at lower prices, and transactions mostly settling at low levels.