Specialty and minor metals
Overview
As demand for semi-conductors, touch-screens and other highly engineered products continues to grow, manufactures rely on the Argus metals price data and reliable market intelligence to track volatility and specialty materials and manage their impact on production costs.
Argus covers electronic, light and high-temperature metals, as well as specialist alloys and rare earths, through Argus Non-Ferrous Markets, Argus Battery Materials and the Argus Rare Earths Analytics service.
Electronic metals
Argus delivers transparent price data, market news and analysis across base metals, minor metals and battery materials to allow downstream participants to achieve a sustainable supply of electronic metals and reduce their exposure to price risk, all while researching and tracking individual materials in their components.
- Arsenic prices
- Bismuth prices
- Gallium prices
- Germanium prices
- Indium prices
- Selenium prices
- Tantalum prices
- Tellurium prices
- Zirconium prices
Light metals
Argus is the leader in light metals price data and serves the most active consuming regions globally in aerospace, automotive and other highly engineered industries. Manufacturers of alloyed materials and light metals benefit from both primary and scrap material coverage in the Argus suite of products.
High-temperature metals
Some materials necessitate higher temperature and corrosion resistance beyond that offered by carbon steel, these often rely on a proprietary blend of alloyed materials. Argus worked closely with manufacturers to develop the Alloy Calculator tool, a one-stop solution for estimating the current value of raw materials in their specific composition to price even the most specific blends of alloys to be priced in primary and scrap form.
- Chromium prices
- Cobalt prices
- Hafnium prices
- Molybdenum prices
- Niobium prices
- Rhenium prices
- Tantalum prices
- Tungsten prices
- Tungsten outlooks
- Vanadium prices
Highlights of specialty metals coverage
- Independent reference prices for highly illiquid markets and niche materials
- Brings transparency to markets with few global suppliers but increasing global demand
- Exchange data with 30-minute delay standard and the option to add real-time
- Twice weekly global bulk alloys, noble alloys and steel feedstock prices
- Comprehensive global electronic metals price assessments
- High-temperature metals price assessments, including full scope of tungsten coverage with optional short and long-term forecasting
- Light metals including a suite of titanium and aerospace-grade price assessments
- Rare earths prices assessments with short and long-term forecasts
- Electronic vehicle and aerospace raw materials coverage, including highly engineered components and structural materials
- Coverage of supply chain issues, including demand, capacity, risks to responsible sourcing and supply
- Alloy Calculator tool allows easy identification of cost implications for material substitutions in any alloyed metals
- Synthetic prices can be created in the Alloy Calculator to provide material value in the absence of spot market assessments
Spotlight content
Browse the latest thought leadership produced by our global team of experts.
Syrah restarts graphite production at Mozambique mine
Syrah restarts graphite production at Mozambique mine
Sydney, 19 June (Argus) — Australian minerals producer Syrah Resources has resumed graphite production at its 350,000 t/yr Balama mine in Mozambique and will restart large-volume shipments in September-December, following months of disruptions owing to protests. Syrah declared a force majeure on sales from Balama in December because of protests at the site, and this remains active, the company said today. But it has restarted production and intends to ramp up output at the mine to restock inventories for shipments in September-December, Syrah said. Its graphite exports in September-December will be shipped to customers outside China. The company is aiming to have a greater presence in ex-China markets and to increase sales from Balama this year, Syrah chairman Jim Askew told investors on 23 May. Syrah sold around 1,300t of natural graphite in January-March, using existing inventories. But the company failed to meet some sales obligations over the quarter. Non-violent protesters blocked access to Balama in September, citing farming resettlement grievances. The demonstrations worsened in October, after Mozambique's disputed general election triggered major protests across the country. Most protesters left the mine in April, after reaching a deal with Syrah, the company said last month —although some remaining demonstrators had to be removed by Mozambique authorities a month later. Syrah regained access to Balama on 3-4 May. Balama's operating infrastructure has not been impacted by the protests and is in good condition, Askew said in late May. By Avinash Govind Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
G7 sets strategy for critical minerals supply
G7 sets strategy for critical minerals supply
London, 18 June (Argus) — G7 leaders have agreed a strategy to protect and diversify critical mineral supply chains in the interest of shared national and economic security, at the group's annual summit in Canada. The group established a Critical Minerals Action Plan, which focused on anticipating shortages of critical minerals, co-ordinating responses to deliberate market disruptions, and diversifying and onshoring mining, processing, manufacturing and recycling where possible. The group also pledged to support mineral-rich emerging and developing countries by building local processing capacity, improving artisanal mining practices and addressing investment barriers. G7 members agreed to develop a roadmap to promote standards-based markets for critical minerals to be completed by year end, which will establish criteria for standards-based markets in partnership with key stakeholders, with a goal of improving traceability. "We have shared national and economic security interests, which depend on access to resilient critical minerals supply chains governed by market principles," the group said on 17 June. "We recognise that non-market policies and practices in the critical minerals sector threaten our ability to acquire essential minerals, including rare earth elements needed for magnets, which are vital for industrial production," the group added. "We will collaborate with partners beyond the G7 to swiftly protect our economic and national security." This agreement came at a time when China has restricted much of the world's access to key critical minerals. Over the past two years, China has introduced export controls for metals including gallium, germanium, antimony, bismuth, tellurium, tungsten and rare earths, resulting in tighter supply and price spikes. Many of these metals are essential to cutting edge defence technology as well as civilian industries. Banks urged to invest in critical minerals G7 leaders also emphasised the urgent need for "immediate and scaled investment" to secure future supply chains, calling on lenders to increase their support for derisking projects and to mobilise private capital. "We encourage multilateral development banks as well as private-sector lenders to make additional capital available for investment in standards-based critical minerals projects, including through innovative financing," the group said. The G7 also committed to collaborating with partners in emerging markets and developing countries to build quality infrastructure, and working to address investment barriers for critical minerals projects. By Cristina Belda Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Poland wraps up CBAM changes with European Parliament
Poland wraps up CBAM changes with European Parliament
Brussels, 18 June (Argus) — Poland has concluded negotiations on behalf of EU member states with the European Parliament for a revised carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), ahead of handing over the bloc's six-month rotating presidency to Denmark at the end of June. But Warsaw will not lead discussions on the EU's emissions cut target for 2040 and the bloc's updated nationally determined contribution (NDC) to the Paris climate agreement. Leading negotiations for EU states with parliament, Poland's deputy climate minister Krzysztof Bolesta said the revised CBAM would exempt 90pc of originally covered EU companies from reporting obligations, while 99pc of emissions embedded in imported products would remain covered. The agreement on CBAM now has to be formally approved by parliament and EU ministers. Once published in the bloc's official journal, the revised CBAM text will exempt importers that do not exceed a new single mass-based threshold of 50 t/yr of imported goods. Bolesta admitted that progress has been held up on concluding the EU's NDC during Warsaw's presidency of EU ministerial meetings. CBAM was also listed by Bolesta as one of the points for flexibility in discussions on the 2040 climate target, alongside carbon credits under Article 6 of the Paris agreement, additional funding and flexibility between climate sub-targets. At a meeting of environment ministers yesterday, Bolesta indicated that most states still favour the European Commission linking its submission of an EU NDC to the UN — which includes a 2035 emissions cut target — with the bloc's planned 2 July proposal for a 2040 EU climate target. The CBAM yesterday contributed to delays in technical negotiations held in Bonn, Germany, for the UN Cop 30 climate conference in Brazil. The Like-Minded Group of Developing Countries, including countries such as Bolivia, China, Saudi Arabia, Cuba and Vietnam, had urged the need to address concerns "with climate change-related trade-restrictive unilateral measures". Despite "very, very divergent views", EU member states agree that it "is absolutely urgent to come up with an NDC before the end of September", Bolesta said. The Polish presidency of the EU, chairing climate ministers' meetings, has advanced NDC work as much as possible in the absence of the commission's proposal to revise the bloc's climate law. "We really have only a couple of months to come up with something. What lacks in the NDC draft is now the headline target," Bolesta said. Countries have not yet discussed the quality of Article 6 offsets, Bolesta added. "Everyone in the room realises that we need to be very stringent on what kind of offset will be let into the system," he said. EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra is "cautiously optimistic" that a landing ground can be found on the 2040 climate target. He called for more assertive climate diplomacy, as a large part of the problem lies outside Europe. For China, Hoekstra noted unfair trade practices and "serious" concerns about plans to build additional coal-fired plants. "It's a mixed bag. And we invite them to step up their ambition," he said. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia's Lynas produces terbium oxide in Malaysia
Australia's Lynas produces terbium oxide in Malaysia
Sydney, 18 June (Argus) — Australian mineral producer Lynas Rare Earths has produced terbium oxide at its Malaysian rare earth plant, adding to its line of rare earth products, the firm announced today. The company produced the oxide using 1,500 t/yr heavy rare earth separation circuits it built in January-March. It previously used the circuits to produce separated dysprosium at the plant in May, becoming the first producer of separated heavy rare earths outside China. Lynas plans to eventually expand its rare earth product line to include dysprosium, terbium, and holmium concentrate, alongside unseparated samarium/europium/gadolinium and unseparated mixed heavy rare earths. Lynas supplies its Malaysian plant with rare earth feedstock from its Mount Weld mine and Kalgoorlie processing plant in Western Australia (WA). But it may expand its feedstock sources in the future. The company signed an initial agreement with Malaysian investment agency Menteri Besar in late May to buy mixed rare earth carbonates from developing Malaysian ionic clay deposits. It did not disclose supply volumes. Lynas' product line expansion comes soon after US and European automakers warned that rare earth export controls could lead to assembly line shutdowns. Lynas is developing a rare earth production plant in the US with the same capabilities as its Malaysian plant. Lynas plans to produce 2,500-3,000 t/yr of heavy rare earth products and 5,000 t/yr of light rare earth products at the site when it opens. The US government helped fund the project in 2019 through a presidential directive under the Defence Production Act . By Avinash Govind Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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