Rare Metals Keep High Price Level with Limited Supply from China

International price keeps high for China dominated rare metals including rare earth, antimony and tungsten. Chinese supply squeeze including export restriction and production control supports the market while the price turned into weak for some items. The market is expected to keep high due to production control during Beijing Olympic game and limited electricity supply in China. Cerium oxide price is firm at CIF US$ 6.3 per kilogram to Japan, which is around 30% higher than the level in mid-May. The price is lifted by strong demand for flat panel display and by higher cost for energy and raw materials. Metallic neodymium price turned into weak recently. A domestic maker source said some transaction is less than US$ 40 per kg compared with US$ 42 in early July while a trading firm source said the price keeps high due to limited export quota of China. Chinese government reduced the export quota by around 20% for rare earth for 2008 from 2007. Antimony ingot price is around US$ 6,350 per tonne, which is 13% higher than the beginning of the year and keeps more than US$ 6,000 since April. Limited supply in China supports the price when Chinese government stops some of the operations. Ammonium paratungstate price keeps the level of US$ 250 per 10 kg of tungsten trioxide since March, which is 5% higher than the level in the beginning of the year. The supply is tight due to firm demand for cemented carbide and limited supply from China.