Rare earths
Argus delivers established, independent rare earths pricing and market intelligence across all rare earth elements, including authoritative coverage outside China.
Overview
Rare earth elements (REEs) are critical raw materials used across advanced manufacturing and clean energy technologies, including electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, electronics, defence systems, aerospace, and industrial manufacturing. Rare earths play a vital role in enabling high‑performance permanent magnets, electronics, and specialised materials essential to modern economies.
Argus supports the global rare earths industry with comprehensive spot market pricing and forecasts, supply and demand data and news for the most commoditized rare earth elements including those used to produce ceramics, catalysts, energy storage and permanent magnets. Through the Argus Rare Earths Analytics and Argus Non‑Ferrous Markets services, Argus delivers established pricing benchmarks and forecasts alongside authoritative insight into the international rare earths markets, including those outside China.
Argus’ rare earths pricing and analysis focus on the individual elements most critical to global supply chains and strategic industries. Coverage includes light rare earth elements such as neodymium, praseodymium, lanthanum, and cerium, alongside heavy rare earths including dysprosium, terbium, yttrium, and europium. Each Rare earth element market exhibits its own distinct supply dynamics, demand drivers, and end‑use applications, making element‑specific pricing and analysis essential to understanding liquidity, supply risk, legislation on trade and evolving market fundamentals.
As part of the Argus Rare Earths Analytics and Argus Non‑Ferrous Markets services, Argus publishes a robust suite of established rare earths price assessments and benchmarks covering key light and heavy rare earth elements, including neodymium, praseodymium, dysprosium, terbium, and praseodymium‑neodymium (NdPr). These assessments are supported by transparent, well-established methodologies, on‑the‑ground market engagement, and forward‑looking analysis. In addition to spot pricing for rare earth oxides and metal, Argus delivers one‑year and ten‑year market and price forecasts, alongside detailed supply, demand, and project analysis, supporting planning, procurement, investment, and risk management across international rare earths trading.
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Australia’s Queensland budgets $3.6bn in energy spend
Australia’s Queensland budgets $3.6bn in energy spend
Sydney, 23 June (Argus) — Australia's Queensland state government has earmarked A$5.2bn ($3.6bn) for power station maintenance and new transmission lines in its 2026-27 budget, as part of its Energy Roadmap plan. The Liberal National Party (LNP) government added A$1.8bn in funding to its electricity maintenance guarantee over the next five years. This builds on a A$400mn investment towards overhauls at the Callide C and Tarong coal-fired power plants, and the Wivenhoe pumped hydro station in 2025-26, the government said. The state allocated an additional A$3.2bn towards its A$13.9bn CopperString transmission project , which will link the national electricity market with the mining city of Mount Isa in the state's northwest. Its eastern link is expected to reach commercial operations by 2032. Queensland also earmarked A$501mn for the A$2.5bn Gladstone transmission project to reinforce central Queensland's energy grid. The state government expects to receive A$4.7bn in coal royalties in 2025-26, A$6.9bn in 2026-27 and A$6.3bn in 2027-28, budget papers show. Coal royalties were suppressed in 2025-26 due to lower global coal prices, the government said. Hard coking coal accounted for around 54.7pc of the state's total coal export value in 2025, followed by semi-soft coking coal at 25.3pc and thermal coal at 19.9pc. The US-Iran war increased global demand for thermal coal due to the disruption of gas supply from the Middle East, pushing premium thermal coal prices up from $117/t in February to $142/t in early April, the government said. It expects thermal coal prices to moderate over the coming quarters. The budget did not alter the state's coal royalty regime, which is the highest in the world . The Queensland Resources Council called on the government to reduce its royalty settings in a statement on 23 June. Argus assessed hard coking coal fob Australia at $199.60/t and premium hard low-volume fob at $243/t on 22 June. The Queensland government expects coking coal sales to be supported by demand from India and Vietnam. LNG exports from Queensland rose to a record 24mn t in 2024-25 and are expected to be similarly strong in 2025-26, the government said. LNG shipments from Gladstone rose on the year in May to 1.93mn t. Queensland expects to receive A$1.1bn in petroleum royalties in 2025-26, A$1.9bn in 2026-27 and A$1.2bn in 2027-28, which primarily come from LNG. The state government also added A$146mn to accelerate the extraction, processing and export of critical minerals and drive new investments into projects and infrastructure, it said. The current LNP administration has committed to keep state-owned coal-fired power plants operating for longer than the previous Labor administration. By Emma Partis Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Australia's Core Lithium to buy Bynoe project
Australia's Core Lithium to buy Bynoe project
Sydney, 19 June (Argus) — Australian producer Core Lithium will buy 100pc of the Bynoe lithium project, located in the Northern Territory, from developer Charger Metals, both companies said today. Core will buy the 63km² site from Charger for A$3.75mn ($2.63mn) in cash. The site surrounds the Core's recently restarted 214,000 t/yr Finniss project and is 9km away from its lithium concentration plant. Core will pay a further A$1mn in cash if the Joint Ore Reserves Committee inferred mineral resource reaches 8mn t or more at a minimum grade of 1pc lithium oxide, pending further drilling. Core will also pay a 1pc royalty to Charger on all gross revenue generated from the tenement, capped at A$10mn, Core said on 19 June. The reserves committee is the accreditation body for Australian mineral resources and reserves. Core's existing Blackbeard prospect is located within the Bynoe project. The company is also developing the contiguous Carlton and BP33 prospects. These exploration sites offer growth options for Core given that spodumene prices have risen sharply in the past 12-months. They may also extend Finniss' 20-year mine life. Argus assessed 6pc spodumene fob Australia at $2,346.50/t on 17 June, up by 323pc on the year. Charger originally bought the Bynoe project from battery recycler Livium for $500,000 in 2024. Charger plans to use revenue from the sale to develop its Lake Johnston lithium project in Western Australia state. By Daniel Gage-Brown Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
SDI moving aluminum plant near Miss. mill
SDI moving aluminum plant near Miss. mill
Houston, 17 June (Argus) — Steel and aluminum producer Steel Dynamics (SDI) intends to relocate its planned recycled aluminum slab plant to Columbus, Mississippi, where the company has been ramping operations at its new aluminum rolling mill. The Indiana-based company's disclosure comes after SDI decided to no longer build the facility in Benson, Arizona, saying on Wednesday that "differences with Arizona state officials risked the construction and operations of the facility". SDI will incur a roughly $16mn hit to its second-quarter profit from asset write-downs related to the move. Still, the company estimated significantly higher earnings compared with the first quarter because of strength across its steel and aluminum operations. The company anticipates higher sequential earnings from its aluminum segment, citing an increase in shipments and higher realized prices as SDI progresses with commissioning operations in Columbus. SDI, which runs the rolling mill under the name Aluminum Dynamics, expects to begin qualifying the facility's third cold-rolling mill in July and noted that it has begun shipping automotive flat-rolled products for customer approvals. SDI expects meaningfully higher profitability in its steel operations on a sequential basis because of strong demand and a wider metal margin. Average realized selling values rose by more than scrap raw material costs during the quarter. The spread between #1 busheling and hot-rolled coil hit a four-year high this week at $734/st, the widest since May 2022. Persistently low steel inventories and firm underlying demand supported robust order activity and higher selling prices during the quarter. Underlying US steel demand across non-residential construction, energy, automotive and industrial sectors remained solid, SDI said. The company expects earnings from its metals recycling operations to be on par with the previous quarter after unrealized non-ferrous scrap hedging losses offset increased ferrous and non-ferrous scrap shipments. SDI expects earnings from its steel fabrication operations to be lower sequentially because higher input costs offset stronger shipments and steady selling prices. Commercial construction, data center and warehouse projects, manufacturing and healthcare demand supported steel fabrication activity. Its order backlog is about 40pc higher than a year earlier, extending into 2027, SDI said. It expects further volume gains this year and into 2027, supported by investment in US manufacturing and infrastructure sectors and ongoing onshoring activity. The company expects second quarter earnings of $3.51-3.55/share, up from $2.01/share a year earlier. SDI will report second quarter earnings on 20 July. By Alex Nicoll Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Sims raises earnings outlook on NF scrap gains
Sims raises earnings outlook on NF scrap gains
Pittsburgh, 17 June (Argus) — Global metals recycler Sims expects higher second-half earnings in its North American business, supported by stronger non-ferrous (NF) scrap markets and improved ferrous trading conditions. Australian-based Sims revised its fiscal 2026 full-year underlying earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) guidance for the year ending 30 June to A$420mn-435mn ($297-308mn), up from A$350mn-420mn in its 18 March outlook, the company said in an investor update. Stronger operating performance in its North American divisions, including North America Metals (NAM) and joint venture SA Recycling (SAR), underpinned the adjustment. US ferrous scrap prices rose across the first half of 2026, with national average shredded scrap reaching $419/gross ton (gt) delivered mill in June , up by $50/gt from June 2025 . A 50pc tariff on imported steel reduced imports and sustained robust mill utilization rates in the US. Non-ferrous scrap prices climbed sharply from January to May on tight supply and firm export demand. But zorba and copper scrap values retreated in early June after base metal prices fell and Asian buyers cut bids. Strength in NAM and SAR is expected to offset weaker conditions in Australia and New Zealand, Sims said. Elevated Chinese steel exports pressured ferrous markets in those regions, despite recent marginal improvements in Asian ferrous prices. The company expects underlying ebit at its e-waste recycling and data center services arm Sims Lifecycle Services to range from A$170mn-175mn, compared with A$165mn-185mn in its March outlook. Strong demand from global data center construction supported the division's earnings over the past year, but fluctuations in decommissioning programs may cause variability in volumes and earnings, Sims said. Sims will report full-year earnings in August. By Brad MacAulay Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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