China Rare Earth Permanent Magnet Exports Rose 18% YoY in Jan-Feb

SHANGHAI, Mar 24 (SMM) - China export of rare earth permanent magnets totalled 8,506 mt from January to February, up 18% YoY. Among them, the permanent magnets exports in January stood at 4,940 mt, an increase of 9% from the previous month; the exports in February were 3,566 mt, down 28% MoM.

The main export destinations of China's rare earth permanent magnets include Europe, America, and Japan. As of the export structure in January and February, the exports to Europe, US and Japan came in at 1,498 mt, 575 mt an 397 mt respectively, taking up 18%, 7% and 5% of China’s total exports. 

The downstream demand for rare earths from sectors such as overseas new energy vehicles and wind turbines is growing, and it is expected that China's rare earth permanent magnet exports will draw an upside trend in 2022. In 2021, the output of new energy vehicles in the eight European countries exceeded 1.95 million units, and that in the United States was more than 650,000 units. In other words, the downstream new energy vehicle industry in Europe and the United States will generate at least 9,000 mt of demand for rare earth permanent magnet.

In 2021, the newly installed capacity of wind turbines in Europe and the US was 17GW and 12.4GW respectively, and the combined demand for rare earth permanent magnets reached 20,400 mt. There is still a big gap with the 2030 renewable energy targets of Europe and the United States.

Since rare earth permanent magnets account for a small proportion of the cost of finished vehicles, the increase in the prices of rare earths has little impact on overseas demand for new energy vehicles. Although rare earths account for a relatively large proportion of the cost of wind turbines, there are currently no low-cost substitutes for NdFeB magnetic materials such as samarium cobalt permanent magnets for overseas wind turbine orders. It is expected that China's rare earth permanent magnet exports will continue to grow in March and April.