Items tagged with rare earth
Chalk this one up on the "Who didn't see it coming" meter. Prices for neodymiumoxide and europium oxide have dropped recently, due to falling demand in European and US markets. In response, Baotou Steel, China's largest rare earth producer (China recently consolidated the rare earth production of multiple companies in Inner Mongolia) has announced that it's suspending all operation in a bid to "balance supply and demand." Prices on the two metals have tumbled roughly 35 percent in recent months; Baotou believes a total one month shut down will apparently redress the situation. China has aggressively nationalized rare earth production in recent years; the WTO ruled in July that the country's actions,...
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Multiple manufacturers in the IT industry have been keeping a wary eye on China's decision to cut back on rare earth exports and the impact it may have on component prices. An article from DigiTimes suggests consumers will see that decision hit the hard drive industry this year, with HDD prices trending upwards an estimated 5-10 percent depending on capacity. Although rare earth magnets are only a small part of a hard drive's total cost, China cut exports last year by 40 percent, which drove pricing for these particular components up an estimated 20-30x. At that point, a rare earth component that originally cost 25 cents is suddenly $5—and given how cheap hard drives have become, that translates...
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