What is the current price of rare earth elements?

Rare earth prices vary widely by element, form, and market tier. Light rare earths like lanthanum and cerium trade at $30-200/kg for oxide, while heavy rare earths like terbium ($800-1,200/kg oxide) and dysprosium ($280-350/kg oxide) command higher prices due to scarcity and export controls. Retail metal prices carry a 5-100x premium over bulk benchmarks. lanthanides.io tracks 238 price records across 31 elements with both retail and bulk pricing.

How much does neodymium cost per kilogram?

Neodymium metal costs approximately $70-120/kg at bulk/industrial benchmark pricing for 99% oxide. Retail neodymium metal from established suppliers ranges from $1,200-20,000/kg depending on form, purity, and quantity. The wide spread reflects the difference between commodity-scale FOB China pricing and small-lot Western retail. NdFeB permanent magnet materials trade at different prices. See our neodymium page for current verified prices with full provenance.

Why are rare earth prices increasing?

Rare earth prices have been driven higher by Chinese export controls introduced since April 2025 (MOFCOM Announcement No. 18/2025), which restrict seven medium and heavy rare earths including samarium, gadolinium, terbium, dysprosium, lutetium, scandium, and yttrium. These controls created a two-tier pricing structure where FOB China export prices trade 30-50% above domestic Chinese levels, and Western retail prices are 3-8x higher. Additional controls on gallium, germanium, tungsten, tellurium, and other strategic metals further tightened supply.

What are China's rare earth export controls?

China has implemented multiple layers of rare earth export controls since 2023: Announcement No. 23/2023 (gallium and germanium), No. 33/2024 (antimony), No. 46/2024 (Ga/Ge/Sb US ban), No. 10/2025 (tungsten, tellurium, bismuth, molybdenum, indium), and No. 18/2025 (seven heavy rare earths). The October 2025 escalation measures (Nos. 55-58, 61, 62) adding five more elements were suspended until November 2026. These controls require MOFCOM export licences with 4-6 month processing times.

Rare Earth Prices & Strategic Materials Pricing 2026

Strategic materials pricing and regulatory intelligence

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