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
Stay ahead of the non-ferrous metal markets
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US vehicle sales hit 3-year low in January
US vehicle sales hit 3-year low in January
Houston, 4 February (Argus) — A sharp drop-off in truck purchases sent US light vehicle sales in January to their lowest level in nearly three years, as low consumer confidence weighed on spending and ongoing supply challenges limited domestic automotive production. Sales of light vehicles — pickup trucks and cars — fell to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 14.9mn units in January, down from 16mn in December, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported this week. Last month's total was down from January 2025's annualized rate of 15.5mn and the lowest since 14.9mn in February 2023. Light truck sales declined by 7.5pc to a 12.3mn unit annual rate in January, while car sales ticked lower 2.6pc to a 2.6mn unit rate in the same timeframe. Buyers slowed purchases following the holiday season, as macroeconomic challenges that began last year persisted into 2026. Uncertainty around geopolitical developments, along with concerns around a short-lived US government shutdown and high borrowing costs have pressured consumer confidence. Reduced supply of new vehicles also limited selling opportunities, as a prolonged outage at aluminum-roller Novelis' facility in Oswego, New York, has impacted automakers' build rates — most notable Ford's — and forced car dealerships to move older inventory. US vehicle production in December was relatively flat at a seasonally adjusted rate of 9.5mn sequentially, only down by 170,000 units from November, the latest Federal Reserve data shows. Last month's total marked the third straight month of output falling below a 10mn unit rate. Auto assemblies are reported with a one-month lag to sales. By Alex Nicoll Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Japan mines rare earth mud from deep seabed
Japan mines rare earth mud from deep seabed
Singapore, 4 February (Argus) — Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (Jamstec) collected the first batch of deep-sea mud containing rare earth elements from a depth of around 6,000m around Minamitorishima on 1 February. Jamstec's deep-sea drilling vessel Chikyu arrived the test site of the rare-earth mud mining system in the waters around Minamitorishima on 17 January. The first rare earth recovery operation began on 30 January and the first batch of mud was brought onboard on 1 February, Jamstec said. The Cross-Ministeral Strategic Innovation Promotion Program (SIP) will conduct an initial treatment test by April once Chikyu returns to Japan on 15 February. This trial is part of SIP's plan to evaluate the feasibility of deep-sea mining in Japan's exclusive economic zone near Minamitorishima. SIP plans to run a full-scale test excavation in February 2027 to recover up to 350 t/d of rare earth mud. SIP will then compile a report by March 2028 to assess the project's profitability and feasibility. The possibility of deep-sea rare earth mining first emerged in 2013 when the University of Tokyo discovered mud with a high concentration of rare earth elements near Minamitorishima. The area is estimated to hold about 16mn t of rare earth resources. If materialised, this would make Japan's national reserves the third-largest in the world. The industry at the time expressed concerns about economic viability, because the cost to recover rare-earth from deep-sea mud is likely to be significantly higher than processing costs in China. The increased price gap for certain rare earth products between the Chinese domestic market and the European and US markets, driven by China's export restrictions, may have increased the commercial feasibility of deep-sea rare earth mining and recovery. But this will remain a concern until SIP releases more details about mining and recovery costs, and what elements are available in its future reports. Deep-sea mining is one of Japan's strategies to reduce its dependency on Chinese imports of critical minerals. Japan relies heavily on imports of rare earths for its high-performance and electronics industries. About 60-70pc of Japan's rare earth imports come from China. Global dysprosium prices ($/kg) Global terbium prices ($/kg) Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
LGES, Hanwha QCells ink US ESS battery supply deal
LGES, Hanwha QCells ink US ESS battery supply deal
Singapore, 4 February (Argus) — South Korean battery maker LG Energy Solutions (LGES) will supply 5GWh of energy storage batteries to Hanwha QCells USA. The supply will consist of 5GWh of lithium-iron-phosphate energy storage system (ESS) batteries produced at its facility in Holland, Michigan, in the US, LGES said on 4 February. The deal spans from 2028-30 and the batteries are for Hanwha's power grid ESS project in the US. LGES, alongside fellow South Korean battery makers, is doubling down on the US' ESS market, where the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) and data centres is fuelling greater electricity demand. South Korean battery makers are planning to convert their electric vehicle (EV) battery production lines into ESS ones, given a dimmer outlook on the US EV market. This comes after the US scrapped a federal tax credit for EVs and plug-in hybrids, as well as the profitability of overseas-made products coming under pressure because of US tariffs. North America's ESS demand could expand to half of its total battery market, said Hanwha QCells' engineering, procurement and construction business unit head Chris Hodrick, echoing what LGES previously said in January 2026. Hanwha completed a 3.3 GW/yr solar module production line at its Cartersville plant in Georgia, US, in 2024. The site also hosts a 5.1 GW/yr solar modules plant. By Joseph Ho Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia launches critical minerals prospectus
Australia launches critical minerals prospectus
Sydney, 4 February (Argus) — Australia's government has released a prospectus of critical mineral projects to promote global investment into domestic projects, the country's resources minister Madeleine King said today. Australia's prospectus covers 78 projects involving 14 critical minerals (see table) . The projects outlined in the document are at or past the pre-feasibility study stage. But only three are currently under construction. The prospectus is limited compared with Australian government forecaster the Office of the Chief Economist's (OCE) major projects list for 2025, which features 130 critical mineral projects. The OCE's list includes projects at an earlier stage of development than those in the prospectus. King launched the prospectus alongside Australia's trade minister Don Farrell on the sidelines of multilateral meetings in Washington, DC. It is a tool for drawing in investment from around the world to create new mineral supply chains, the ministers said. Australia agreed to co-invest at least $3bn into critical mineral projects with the US government in October 2025. Government lender the US Export-Import Bank indicated that it would consider providing $2.2bn of co-funding to seven Australian projects at the time. Australian and Japanese officials also aim to partner on critical mineral projects . Australia wants the next stage of its relationship with Japan to focus on economic security around critical minerals, Australian foreign minister Penny Wong said in September 2025. Australia's recent push for global critical minerals co-operation comes alongside government support for domestic mineral projects. The Australian government will launch a A$1.2bn ($770mn) Critical Minerals Strategic Reserve in 2026 to back developers. The government will secure offtake rights to Australian minerals and sell those rights to meet demand under the initiative. It plans to primarily support antimony, gallium, and rare earth element projects under the scheme. The OCE expects Australian producers to earn A$5.9bn from critical mineral exports by the July 2026–June 2027 fiscal year, largely because of manganese and rare earth earnings, its December 2025 forecasts show. By Avinash Govind Critical Minerals Prospectus summary Category Number of Projects Development Stage Pre-feasbility 18 Pre-construction 4 Midstream 29 Feasibility 24 Construction 3 Care and maintenance 1 Mineral Rare earth elements 16 Cobalt 13 Vanadium 10 Graphite 9 High purity aluminium 7 Manganese 7 Lithium 5 Antimony 2 Gallium 1 Other 9 Source: Australian Critical Minerals Prospectus Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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