Foreign media said China is difficult to maintain control of the global rare earths market

Beijing on October 21 morning news, according to reports, a former adviser to the United States Department of Defense said, in view of the rare earth resource utilization efficiency and improve the user to explore alternative sources, China may be difficult to maintain control over the global rare earths market.

2010, Chinese restrictions on rare earth supply and exports, leading to soaring prices of rare earth, rare earth mining company's share price rose sharply.

In many advanced technologies, lanthanum, dysprosium and other rare earth elements play an indispensable role. As of 2010, China controls 97 percent of global rare earth supplies.

However, since that time, rare earth prices began to decline, while the American company Molycorp, Australia Lynas Corporation shares also will decline.

University of Texas economist Eugene Hodes had during the 2010 to 2012 worked at the United States Department of Defense to study rare problem. He pointed out in a report, leading to more investment in rare earth prices higher than Chinese manufacturers in other countries harvest.

Molycorp has restarted California rare earth production, while Lynas Corporation in helping the Government of Japan, setting up factories in Malaysia.

Less than the main suppliers in China and other light rare earth lanthanum and praseodymium, dysprosium and europium and other heavy rare earths supply. However, China's export restrictions so that is not entirely valid, some small producers can still rare earth exports to other countries.

In addition, other countries also enhance the ability to handle rare. Rhodia has available from Molycorp and Lynas Corporation's supply of heavy rare earth ore extracted. If cost-effective, then the production of heavy rare earths Africa and China may increase.

In addition, the customer is still rare to find ways to reduce demand. For example, electric vehicles require a large amount of Dy as an additive to the art of the magnet, but can be significantly reduced in other areas, the use of dysprosium.

Currently, a joint venture by Hitachi Mitsubishi, Daido Steel (Daido Steel) and Molycorp tripartite joint venture is to create a low-dysprosium magnet factory.

Commercial areas can reduce the use of rare earth to make room for strategic purposes. Eugene • Hodes said the situation in the past several years indicates that the user is no need to panic.

He said: "The government's concerns about the industry as an opportunity to make money." Due to the global supply of rare earth nervousness subsided, rare earth prices have also suffered setbacks. With lanthanum oxide, for example, the price from 2011 all the way down to $ 16.26 per kilogram in 2014 low of $ 3.24 in the second quarter.

2012, Molycorp company reported losses of $ 450 million, and in 2013 suffered another $ 386 million in losses. However, if China is trying to tighten export volume of rare earth again, rare earth producers will inevitably gains decent profit.

 

Tungsten Manufacturer & Supplier: Chinatungsten Online - http://www.chinatungsten.com
Tel.: 86 592 5129696; Fax: 86 592 5129797
Email:  sales@chinatungsten.com
Tungsten & Molybdenum Information Bank: http://i.chinatungsten.com
Tungsten News & Tungsten Prices, 3G Version: http://3g.chinatungsten.com
Molybdenum News & Molybdenum Price: http://news.molybdenum.com.cn

• < Prev
• Next >