Germanium Prices Stable Post-Holiday, Ingot and Dioxide Remain Unchanged at 27,250 and 19,250 Yuan/kg

[SMM Tantalum Flash] A trading contact said on 9 October that it was still receiving Rwandan tantalum offers at “4.8+” and had bought no tantalum in the preceding few weeks. Other contacts in the supplied sample described offers above US$4 per kg per grade percentage point. The “4.8+” message did not restate its pricing unit, assay, delivery basis or the dates of the underlying offers. It is a received asking indication, not a transaction price. The contact said its Rwanda tin flows remained stable, but it had held off buying tantalum while considering air-freight economics and had shifted more attention to West Africa. It reported a Nigerian offer and expressed interest in a Sierra Leone trader; neither was described as a completed tantalum purchase. These conversations show how one buyer is responding to the offers, without establishing a representative Rwanda price or a wider change in trade flows.

[SMM Tantalum Flash] A trader quotation recorded on 2 October in the supplied survey lists DRC-origin coltan described as 38% Ta₂O₅ at US$60,000 per tonne, or US$60/kg. The sheet marks it CIF, names Dar es Salaam as the origin port and leaves the destination blank. The same trader mentioned US$43/kg for material spanning 6–35% grade. These are two received asking indications from one trader; the survey provides no accepted order or completed-trade evidence. At the stated 38% grade, US$60/kg calculates to about US$1.58 per kg per grade percentage point. A separate 9 October conversation described traders sourcing from the DRC and routing material through Zambia towards Dar es Salaam, but did not link a shipment to this quoted lot. Assay, quantity and delivery terms still need checking. This small survey sample does not establish a DRC-wide price or a price movement.

South Africa’s high-carbon ferrochrome exports rose to 117,180 mt in August 2026, up 20.0% month-on-month from July’s restated 97,618 mt and around 45.8% higher than a year earlier, though still 5.0% below June’s 123,310 mt. Canada’s imports jumped from 1,054 mt to 26,373 mt, making it the largest destination, while the United States rose 128.0% to 26,029 mt. Together the two markets took 44.7% of exports, against 12.8% in July. China fell 27.5% to 20,505 mt, cutting its share to 17.5% from 29.0% and dropping it to fourth place, as weak demand and ample domestic supply limited its appetite; SMM data show Chinese ferrochrome supply grew 12.94% in the first half of 2026 while stainless-related chrome demand rose only 2.3%. South Korea rose 43.3% to 20,790 mt, while Japan fell 42.1% to 13,727 mt. Merafe expects the ramp-up of the restarted Wonderkop and Boshoek smelters to be fully complete towards the end of the year.