As Labour Day holiday Approaches, Rare Earth Inquiry and Procurement Activities Heat Up [[SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review]]

Published: Apr 30, 2025 15:11

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[SMM Rare Earth Weekly Review: Rare Earth Inquiry and Purchase Activity Picks Up as Labour Day Holiday Approaches] Currently, the price of lanthanum oxide remains stable at 4,200-4,800 yuan/mt, while the price of cerium oxide continues to hold steady at 11,600-12,500 yuan/mt this week. During the week, the price of cerium oxide still dropped back slightly, with poor purchase enthusiasm in the downstream market. The price of Pr-Nd oxide also continued to show a weak trend this week, but with its price having fallen to a relatively low level that separation plants can bear, downstream purchase willingness has increased.

April 30 News:

Rare Earth Ores:

Today, the price range of rare earth carbonate is 33,200-33,400 yuan/mt, monazite prices have adjusted to 39,200-39,600 yuan/mt, and the price of medium-yttrium, europium-rich ore is approximately 179,000-180,000 yuan/mt. Recently, the overall price fluctuations of rare earth ores have been relatively small. As indicators have not yet been released, the market sentiment remains cautious, and separation plants are not actively procuring, leading to a slight downward trend in rare earth ore prices.

Rare Earth Oxides:

Currently, the price of lanthanum oxide is temporarily stable at 4,200-4,800 yuan/mt, and the price of cerium oxide has continued to stabilize at 11,600-12,500 yuan/mt this week. Within the week, the price of cerium oxide still dropped back slightly, with poor procurement enthusiasm in the downstream market; the price of Pr-Nd oxide also continued to show a weak trend this week. However, as its price has fallen to a relatively low level that separation plants can bear, the downstream purchase willingness has increased. Meanwhile, coinciding with the period of restocking before the Labour Day holiday, the procurement volume in the rare earth oxide market has increased, and the rate of decline in the prices of dysprosium oxide and terbium oxide this week has also significantly slowed down. The price of gadolinium oxide has also begun to stabilize this week. The price of yttrium oxide was further reduced to 50,000-52,000 yuan/mt this week, with no significant improvement in overall market trading volume.

Rare Earth Metals:

Within the week, the overall quotation from metal plants remains weak. It is understood that although several magnetic material enterprises have successively obtained export licenses, overall, the downstream demand situation has not shown significant improvement. Some metal plants have slightly reduced their production and operation of Pr-Nd alloy. Due to export restrictions, the market procurement demand for dysprosium-iron alloy and terbium metal has also become sluggish, and most industry participants remain pessimistic about the future prices of rare earths.

Rare Earth Permanent Magnets:

The prices of NdFeB blanks are as follows: NdFeB blank N38 (Ce) is quoted at 135-145 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40M is quoted at 181-191 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 40H is quoted at 185-195 yuan/kg; NdFeB blank 45SH (Ce) is quoted at 235-255 yuan/kg.

This week, due to the lack of significant growth in end-use demand and sluggish market transactions, the price trend of magnetic materials has been weak. Restocking activities before the Labour Day holiday have slightly increased inquiries in the spot market, with market quotations and procurement showing some signs of recovery. However, most market participants still maintain a wait-and-see attitude. Magnetic material enterprises have limited acceptance of high-priced raw materials, and their procurement sentiment is relatively cautious. As the magnetic material industry is about to enter the off-season for taking orders, most industry participants lack confidence in the future market.

Rare Earth Scrap:

This week, the price of Pr-Nd recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 429-440 yuan/kg; the price of dysprosium recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 1,584-1,606 yuan/kg; the price of terbium recycled from NdFeB scrap is quoted at 5,115-5,335 yuan/kg.

This week, due to poor orders from magnetic material enterprises, the circulation volume of Pr-Nd scrap in the market has decreased. Meanwhile, as the holiday approaches, a peak in restocking has emerged in the market, leading to an increase in the procurement volume of Pr-Nd oxide. Under the combined influence of these factors, the market price of Pr-Nd scrap has slightly rebounded.

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