Rare earth market update on April 23, 2025
The domestic rare earth market in China continues to perform poorly. As positive support weakens, the buyer's market holds a significant advantage, primarily reflected in fluctuating declines in mainstream product prices and low order volumes. Today, prices for praseodymium-neodymium metal, dysprosium-iron alloy, and terbium oxide dropped by approximately 3,000 yuan/ton, 10,000 yuan/ton, and 140 yuan/kg, respectively. Notably, the price of terbium oxide has seen a significant decline over the past two days, mainly due to its substantial earlier increases and reduced inquiries from downstream buyers.
On the positive side: first, due to high production costs and limited supply of certain products, many suppliers are reluctant to offer discounts; second, supported by robust development in sectors such as new energy vehicles, industrial robots, high-end electronics, and aerospace, the demand for rare earth functional materials remains high, which helps to warm up the rare earth market. On the negative side: first, earlier price surges in mainstream rare earth products—driven by China's export controls on medium and heavy rare earths and limited imports of overseas rare earth minerals—have led to a recent decline in downstream consumer enthusiasm; second, with insufficient purchasing power from magnetic material companies and tight liquidity, some suppliers are more willing to trade price for volume.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, in the first quarter, production of "new three" products—new energy vehicles, lithium-ion batteries for vehicles, and solar cells—increased by 45.4%, 39.2%, and 18.5% year-on-year, respectively. Production of green products such as wind power generation units, carbon fiber and its composites, solid waste treatment equipment, and monocrystalline silicon rose by 74.4%, 45.6%, 14.9%, and 10.6%, respectively.
Price of rare earth products on April 23, 2025
Picture of neodymium oxide
