As industry regulation policies continue to be implemented, compliant scrap is currently insufficient to support recyclers in maintaining a high operating rate. Market expectations for tighter rare earth raw material supply are intensifying. After a prior period of fluctuating downward, Pr-Nd oxide prices have achieved three consecutive daily gains. Supply side, driven by policy guidance, the rare earth scrap recycling industry has entered a phase of reasonable production pace adjustments. Multiple recyclers reported that the industry operating rate is expected to pull back from June to July: large enterprises, with their higher self-mining ratios, are seeing more pronounced production cuts; while medium and small enterprises, with lower self-mining ratios and a larger proportion of processing orders, are experiencing a relatively limited impact on actual production. Pr-Nd Oxide Sees Three-Day Winning Streak, Up 2.85% on 17th According to SMM price data, the spot price of Pr-Nd oxide stood at 720,000-725,000 yuan/mt on June 17, with an average price of 722,500 yuan/mt, an increase of 20,000 yuan/mt or 2.85% from the previous trading day. Driven by proliferating expectations of supply tightness, Pr-Nd oxide began its rise on June 15. The average price of 722,500 yuan/mt on June 17 represents an increase of 32,000 yuan/mt or 4.63% from the average price of 690,500 yuan/mt on June 12, achieving a three-day winning streak. Market Outlook Expectations for production cuts in the scrap recycling sector significantly boosted Pr-Nd prices, but downstream purchasing sentiment remains cautious, with a heavy wait-and-see atmosphere in the market. Near-term trading is expected to stay stagnant, with Pr-Nd prices likely moving sideways in a narrow range in the short term. Medium and long-term, it is crucial to monitor the supply pace of compliant scrap. As an important supplement to rare earth raw materials, the circulation volume of compliant recycled materials and the normalized operating rates of recyclers will have a lasting impact on raw material supply elasticity. Meanwhile, attention should be paid to the pace of demand release during traditional industry peak seasons; changes on both the supply and demand sides will affect the medium and long-term price equilibrium for Pr-Nd oxide. Recommended Reading:

[SMM Rare Earth News] USA Rare Earths (USAR) announced that its hydrometallurgical demonstration facility in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, has officially begun operations. The facility targets production of its first separated oxides in Q3 2026, at which point it will become one of the few Western enterprises capable of commercially supplying strategic heavy rare earth oxides such as dysprosium, terbium, and yttrium. The plant features a fully automated design and is equipped with multi-stage solvent extraction circuits and a real-time monitoring system. Its demonstration project will validate the processing flows for three raw materials in phases and in parallel: ore from the Round Top project in Texas, third-party mixed rare earth carbonates (including feedstock from Serra Verde), and the recycling of NdFeB magnet grinding scrap. This start-up marks a key step for USAR in building a complete rare earth value chain encompassing mining, processing, metals, and magnet manufacturing.

[SMM Rare Earth Express] Affected by the sharp rise in raw material prices today, some magnetic material factories suspended quotations, waiting for prices to stabilize before quoting based on market conditions. As of 12 p.m. today, SMM Pr-Nd oxide closed at 720,000-725,000 yuan/mt, up 20,000 yuan/mt from yesterday. SMM Pr-Nd alloy closed at 875,000-885,000 yuan/mt, up 27,500 yuan/mt from yesterday. The prices of terbium and dysprosium were also raised, with the increase ranging from 10 to 40 yuan/kg.

[SMM Rare Earth Overseas] As of 12:00 a.m. today, FOB neodymium oxide was quoted at $160-192/kg, FOB praseodymium oxide at $125-129/kg, FOB terbium oxide at $1,153-1,241/kg, and FOB dysprosium oxide at $274-328/kg. FOB terbium metal was quoted at $1,441-1,525/kg. The across-the-board rise in rare earth prices this round was mainly driven by domestic price increases in China, with heavy rare earth posting particularly notable gains, and dysprosium and terbium each rising $20-50/kg. Overseas inquiry frequency increased significantly this week, but short-term spot transactions remained difficult due to controls and approval cycle constraints.

Northern China is the core hinterland of China's cable industry, leveraging its industrial heritage, full-chain supporting facilities, and favorable policies from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei coordinated development to build a comprehensive industrial cluster integrating raw material processing, cable production, new material R&D, and intelligent equipment manufacturing. The regional cable industry’s annual output value exceeds 100 billion yuan, supported by a solid industrial foundation and vast market space. Compared to the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta advantage industry clusters, the northern cable industry still faces shortcomings such as scattered industrial resources, weak industry-academia-research linkages, and insufficient risk resilience of the industry chain. Breaking through collaboration barriers is key to industry quality improvement. will be held on July 23-24, 2026 at Crowne Plaza Qingdao Jinshui, Shandong . The conference focuses on three major themes: industrial collaboration, green intelligence, and globalization. SMM joins hands with Baotou Zhenxiong Copper Industry Co., Ltd. to invite merchants from the entire industry chain to gather, deeply explore industry opportunities, and boost the quality and upgrade of the northern cable industry. Click to attend, and we look forward to meeting you at the conference. Baotou Zhenxiong Copper Industry Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as Baotou Zhenxiong) was registered and established in June 2015 in Baotou Rare Earth High-tech Zone. The company’s main business focuses on R&D and production of high-precision, high-purity copper wire drawing products . Currently, it has an annual production capacity of 100,000 mt of copper rod and 40,000 mt of various copper wire conductor deep processing. Products cover pure copper conductor materials with diameters from 0.016 mm to 8 mm, as well as various alloy, tin-plated, gold-plated, silver-plated, and other copper conductor materials. In the field of R&D and production of alloy ultra-fine wires, the company has reached a leading level in China. Currently, the finest diameter of high-precision copper alloy wire products produced is 0.016 mm, equivalent to 1/5 the thickness of a human hair. Its independently developed high-purity, low-resistance new high-conductivity material products have won the honorary title of the first batch of new materials in the autonomous region for two consecutive years. It is the only high-tech enterprise in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region engaged in the R&D and manufacturing of high-purity, high-precision copper conductors. The company’s products are widely used downstream in high-end fields such as precision electronic components, medical devices, aviation, automotive electronics, communications, gaming consoles, industrial robots, ships, deep-sea cables, and drilling. Since its establishment, the company has maintained excellent operating performance. In 2024, its sales volume was 72,000 mt, revenue was 5.12 billion yuan, a YoY increase of 45.22%. Since its establishment, the company has been committed to deep R&D and deep processing of new copper conductor materials, continuously improving and innovating. Currently, it has obtained 3 invention patents and 20 utility model patents. Meanwhile, the company emphasizes systematic management and has successively obtained the following certifications: ISO 9001:2015 international quality management system certification; ISO 14001:2015 environmental management system certification; ISO 45001:2018 occupational health and safety management system certification; ISO 50001 energy management system certification; IATF 16949:2016 international quality management system certification for the automotive industry; and ISO 14021:2016 recycled content verification statement. In November 2019, it passed the Level 3 safety production standardization certification. In 2018, the company was recognized as a "High-Tech Enterprise," and in the same year, it was honored as an "Outstanding Private Enterprise of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region." In 2019, the company's R&D center was rated as the autonomous region-level "New Copper Conductor Materials" R&D center. In 2020, it was designated as a pilot construction unit for Baotou's "Zero-Waste City" initiative and a "Green Factory." In June 2020, it was recognized as an autonomous region-level "Green Factory" enterprise and a "Specialized and Sophisticated" small and medium-sized enterprise in the autonomous region. In 2021, it was recognized as an Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level enterprise technology center and was honored with the Baotou City Integrity Enterprise title. In December 2021, the company was ranked 90th among the "Top 100 Private Enterprises in Inner Mongolia" and 15th among the "Top 30 Private Sci-Tech Innovation Enterprises in Inner Mongolia." In May 2022, it was recognized as the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level Copper Conductor Industrial Design Center. In September 2022, it received the title of Benchmark Demonstration Enterprise for Standard Adoption in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region for 2022. In 2023, the company's "TU1 Grade Copper Wire Rod for Electrical Applications" product was recognized as a national-level green design product. In 2024, it was recognized as an Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region-level green supply chain management enterprise and was honored as the autonomous region-level Manufacturing Single Champion Enterprise. In 2025, it received the titles of Baotou City Gazelle Enterprise and the autonomous region-level Outstanding Sci-Tech Innovation Private Enterprise. In 2026, it passed the national green factory certification. Contact Information SMM Conference Contact Zhang Guolei 166 0190 0190 zhangguolei@smm.cn

Aldoro Resources reported that hydrometallurgical testing of the Kameelburg niobium and rare earth deposit in Namibia yielded encouraging results, with a simple process but relatively high recoveries of rare earths and strontium, while drilling also intersected high-grade niobium ore. Tests commissioned by the company and conducted by ALS Metallurgy Services in Western Australia showed that Kameelburg can be treated using a direct acid leaching method, eliminating the need for flotation or magnetic separation processes used at MP Materials' Mountain Pass operation in the US and Lynas Rare Earth's Mt Weld rare earth mine in Western Australia. The hydrochloric acid leaching process can be carried out at ambient temperature and pressure, and if scaled up, is expected to significantly reduce development costs.

According to overseas media reports, London-listed Pensana announced that construction of the Longonjo rare earth mine in Angola is progressing as planned, with a total investment of $250 million, targeting first commissioning and production of mixed rare earth carbonate (MREC) in 2027. The mine has a life of 20 years, with initial annual production of 20,000 mt of mixed rare earth carbonate, expanding to 40,000 mt in the fourth year. $36 million has been invested in the development of the mine and beneficiation plant, and main construction works are 22% complete. Manufacturing of long-lead equipment is progressing well, with committed procurement capital expenditure of approximately $135 million. The company is optimizing the heavy rare earth recovery circuit, targeting over 122 mt per year of dysprosium and terbium, positioning Longonjo as one of the largest heavy rare earth producers in the Western world. The modular separation facility can be expanded with mine expansion and includes a metallization circuit. Pensana has signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Toyota Tsusho for the offtake of up to 20,000 mt per year of mixed rare earth carbonate from Longonjo for a five-year term. The company has established a multi-partner offtake framework covering Japan's Toyota Tsusho, US-based ReElement Technologies, and US/Germany-based VAC/eVAC Magnetics. The project has received a $165 million strategic investment from Cascade Natural Resources and debt financing from ABSA, with political and commercial risk insurance provided by the US Export-Import Bank.

US rare earth developer Rare Element Resources (RER) is advancing its demonstration plant for producing Pr-Nd oxide, which is planned to start full operation in late summer 2026. RER stated that the demonstration plant is planned to operate for up to 12 months to support the design and construction of a full-scale commercial separation facility. The company has not yet disclosed the quantitative details of the plant. RER fully owns the Bear Lodge rare earth project in Wyoming and plans to establish a processing facility near Upton, Wyoming. The Bear Lodge project was designated as a covered project under the Fast-41 program of the Federal allowed Improvement Steering Council in March 2026. RER expects to complete all federal and state permitting and licensing requirements by early 2028.

Aclara Resources announced that its Penco Module ion-adsorption type rare earth project in the Biobío region of Chile has obtained an environmental permit resolution. The project employs Aclara's patented "Circular Mineral Harvesting" technology to sustainably extract the heavy rare earth elements dysprosium (Dy) and terbium (Tb) with low water consumption, for use in permanent magnets in EVs, renewable energy, and national defense. Penco Module has become one of the few heavy rare earth projects approved in Chile (outside China) and is expected to start production in mid-2028, with an annual output of 811 mt of rare earth oxides.

Magnum Mining & Exploration intersected near-surface mineralization in the first 24 air-core holes at the Piracanjuba North geophysical anomaly in Brazil. Key intersections: 11m from surface grading 0.0507% TREO and 0.011% MREO (magnet rare earth oxides), including 2m from 8m depth grading 0.0849% TREO and 0.0239% MREO. Ammonium sulphate extraction of dysprosium and terbium achieved recoveries up to 66%.