Rare earth prices rebound as demand for magnetic materials rises and supply is tight
Recently, driven by factors such as the increase in demand for downstream magnetic materials, the market supply has been tight, and the price of rare earth has rebounded. Data show that europium oxide rose by nearly 7% on the 3rd, and rose by 18.5% in the past week. Terbium oxide, metal praseodymium neodymium, and praseodymium neodymium oxide also rose to varying degrees.
Since the beginning of the year, the price of rare earths has begun to rise, with the price of some varieties rising by nearly 10%. Northern Rare Earth has repeatedly raised the listed price of rare earths. From the perspective of my country's rare earth exports, in February 2017, the volume increased and the price fell, but the data in March has shown a situation where both volume and price have increased.
On the one hand, the rise in rare earth prices is due to the effect of the combination of policies. Frequent small batch purchases and storage, special anti-criminal operations, and strengthened control of the six major rare earths have ushered in an upward trend in rare earth prices. On the other hand, the trend of rare earth consumption is improving, and supply and demand are improving. Rare earth magnets account for a quarter of rare earth consumption, with an average annual consumption growth rate of 10%. In addition, there is a steady growth in other larger application fields, such as catalysts and metallurgy. The increase in demand while the total quota index remains unchanged, coupled with the normalization of the crackdown on rare earths, the actual supply shrinks, and the price of rare earths rises.
