Column: Electric dreams turn into a nightmare for battery metals
A sector that was once racing to build new supply has been closing mines and deferring projects as low prices bite into the cost curve.
China’s exports of rare earths minerals in September fell 11.5% from August, customs data showed on Monday, as rising domestic demand and prices encouraged exporters to sell domestically.
The world’s largest producer of rare earths last month shipped 4,181 metric tons of the 17 minerals used to make products ranging from magnets in electric vehicles to consumer electronics, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
That compared with 4,723 tons in August and 3,935 tons in September 2023.
“Some exporters preferred to sell domestically amid a price rally driven by improved demand and tight supply last month,” said Yang Jiawen, an analyst at consultancy Shanghai Metals (SMM) Market.
China’s spot prices of praseodymium-neodymium oxide were up nearly 5% month-on-month at 428,000 yuan a ton on Sept. 30, SMM data showed.
Beijing’s implementation of new regulations on the industry from Oct. 1, lower-than-expected mining output as well as smelting and separation quota together with improved seasonally demand tightened domestic supply, supporting prices, said analysts.
“Meanwhile, overseas buying interest for magnet products receded amid the growing supply outside China,” SMM’s Yang said.
Exports in the first three quarters of 2024 climbed 6.4% from the same period a year before to 42,936 tons, the customs data showed.
China’s rare earths imports last month slipped 32% from the year before to 10,804 tons, bringing the total from January to September to 102,489.1 tons, a year-on-year decline of 23.7%.
(By Amy Lv and Colleen Howe; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Toby Chopra, Louise Heavens and Tomasz Janowski)
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