#67 Ho

Holmium

Heavy Rare Earth Monitored

Highest magnetic moment of any element. Critical for medical lasers; emerged as Dy/Tb substitute in permanent magnets after April 2025 export controls.

Main trade forms: Oxide (Ho₂O₃), Metal
Available from: CN, AU, MY
Purity range: 99.5%–99.9999%

Last update: 2026-03-29
23 records

Retail Reference

$2400/kg

Metal 99.95% (3N5) · 73 g

Smart-Elements · AT · 2026-03

Retail Premium: 8.8×

Bulk Benchmark

$270/kg

Metal 99.9% (3N)

Metallos.de · DDP · 2026-03

Holmium was not included in China’s April 4, 2025 export controls (Announcement No. 18/2025) that restrict Sm, Gd, Tb, Dy, Lu, Sc, and Y [3].

Holmium was added on October 9, 2025 (Announcement No. 57/2025, item 1C909) covering metallic Ho, Ho alloys, Ho targets, Ho permanent magnets, Ho crystal and magnetic refrigeration materials, and all Ho oxides and compounds [4][5].

Announcement No. 57 was suspended before taking effect. MOFCOM Announcement No. 70 (7 November 2025) paused all six October 9 announcements until 10 November 2026 [6]. The regulation is legally intact but unenforced.

Separately, China’s Rare Earth Management Regulations (effective 1 October 2024) impose domestic traceability, production quotas, and supply-chain controls on all 17 rare earth elements including holmium [7]. These were never suspended.

Instrument	Covers Ho?	Status (March 2026)
No. 18/2025 (April 2025)	No	Active — does not apply
No. 57/2025 (October 2025)	Yes	Suspended until 10 Nov 2026
RE Management Regs (2024)	Yes	Active — domestic controls

Applications

Application	Role	Significance
NdFeB permanent magnets	Coercivity dopant replacing Dy/Tb post-April 2025	Primary demand driver since mid-2025; prompted China’s October 2025 controls [31]
Ho:YAG medical lasers	2.08 µm IR emission for lithotripsy and HoLEP	Standard of care; ~500,000 US procedures/year [25]
Nuclear reactor control rods	High neutron absorption cross-section (σ_a = 64 b)	Defence and civil nuclear applications [25]
High-field magnets	Highest µ of any element (10.6 µ_B)	Flux concentrators, MRI pole pieces, physics research [25]
Fibre optic calibration	Sharp absorption bands at 200–900 nm (Ho₂O₃ in glass)	Wavelength reference standard in telecommunications [25]

Market & Supply

Global market value (2025) ~$37 million [1]

China refined supply share 95–99% [25][26]

Oxide, EXW China ~$62/kg (Ho₂O₃ ≥99.5%) [18]

Oxide, NE Asia index $82–106/kg [19][1]

Ex-China premium (heavy REEs) 3–4× domestic; projected 8.3× by 2027 [27][28]

Price change, Sep–Dec 2025 −8.2% (to $77.62/kg) [1]

Price change, Jan–Feb 2026 +35.9% (to $105.51/kg) [1]

Western retail metal $2,400–27,000/kg [8][10]

Non-Chinese supply pipeline

Project	Location	Product	Status
Lynas Rare Earths	Kuantan, Malaysia	Dy/Tb oxide (Ho planned)	First non-CN HREE producer, May 2025 [29]
Iluka Resources (Eneabba)	Western Australia	Mixed HREE	Refinery commissioning expected 2026 [30]
Energy Fuels (White Mesa)	Utah, US	RE concentrate	Monazite processing; Ho not yet separated [30]
MP Materials (Fort Worth)	Texas, US	Separated REO	Heavy REE separation mid-2026; ext. feedstock [30]

No project currently produces commercial volumes of separated holmium oxide outside China.

Metal Offers

Date	Purity	$/kg	Qty	Seller	Country	Category	Notes
2026-03	99.9%	270	1 kg	Metallos.de	DE	Wholesale	German retailer [11]
2026-03	99.95%	2,400	72.88 g	Smart-Elements	AT	Retail	Hemispheric ingot [8]
2026-03	99.99%	2,420	100 g	Smart-Elements	AT	Retail ref.	Sublimed dendritic; best established rate [8]
2026-03	99.5%	est. 3,900–4,800	31.1 g	RWMM	US	Retail	Serialised bullion, assay certificate [10]
2026-03	99.99%	7,600	5 g	Smart-Elements	AT	Retail	Distilled crystals, argon-sealed [8]
2026-03	99.99%	25,000	~1 g	Smart-Elements	AT	Retail	Sublimed dendritic in ampoule [8]
2026-03	99.95%+	27,080	8.79 g	Smart-Elements	AT	Retail	Precision 10 mm density cube [8]
2026-03	99.9%	26,530	5 g	Alfa Aesar / Thermo Fisher	US	Lab-grade	Certified, −200 mesh powder [12]
2026-03	99.9%	28,230	25 g	Alfa Aesar / Thermo Fisher	US	Lab-grade	Same product, larger qty [12]
—	various	quote	—	American Elements	US	Industrial	All forms; RFQ only [13]
—	≥99.9%	quote	—	Stanford Advanced Materials	US	Industrial	Ingot, foil, rod, powder [14]
—	various	quote	—	ESPI Metals	US	Industrial	Foil, sheet, rod, powder [15]
—	various	quote	—	Edgetech Industries	US/CN	Industrial	Metal, sputtering targets [16]
—	various	quote	—	GoodFellow	UK	Lab/Industrial	Powder, pellets, foil; login required [17]

Oxide Offers (Ho₂O₃)

Date	Purity	$/kg	Qty	Seller	Country	Category	Notes
2026-03	≥99.5%	62	bulk	SMM / EarthRarest (EXW CN)	CN	Benchmark	Factory-gate reference [18]
2026-03	99.5%+	82	bulk	BusinessAnalytiq (NE Asia)	—	Benchmark ref.	Regional composite index [19]
2026-02	—	106	bulk	IMARC (NE Asia)	—	Benchmark	Metal-equiv. basis; +36% YTD [1]
2026-03	99.5–99.95%	145–150	1 kg	Made-in-China.com (Ganzhou Wanfeng et al.)	CN	Wholesale	FOB China [24]
2026-03	99.9%	4,580	50 g	Chemsavers	US	Lab-grade	[22]
2026-03	99.99%	4,679	50 g	MSE Supplies	US	Lab-grade	4N powder [20]
2026-03	99.9%	5,050	50 g	Alfa Aesar (Acros)	US	Lab-grade	−325 mesh [12]
2026-03	99.9%	10,310	50 g	Alfa Aesar	US	Lab-grade	REO basis [12]
2026-03	99.9999%	79,900	10 g	MSE Supplies	US	Lab-grade	6N ultra-high purity [21]
2026-03	99.999%	105,540	1 g	Sigma-Aldrich	US	Lab-grade	5N; smallest available qty [23]
—	various	quote	—	Stanford Advanced Materials	US	Industrial	RFQ only [14]

Important Notes

November 2026 deadline China’s October 2025 holmium export controls (No. 57/2025) are suspended until 10 November 2026. The regulation is legally intact and can reactivate without new legislation [6]. If reinstated, it covers metallic Ho, alloys, magnets, oxides, and compounds.

Magnet substitution driver Holmium emerged as a Dy/Tb substitute in NdFeB permanent magnets after April 2025 export controls restricted dysprosium and terbium. This demand shift prompted China to add holmium to its October 2025 control list [31]. Continued substitution could fundamentally change holmium’s demand profile.

Extreme retail premium The retail-to-bulk premium for holmium metal is approximately 29×. Western retail metal at $2,420/kg compares to Ho₂O₃ at $82/kg (NE Asia index). This reflects the near-total absence of non-Chinese holmium metal production and the high cost of small-lot reduction processing.

Supply concentration China supplies 95–99% of global refined holmium. No non-Chinese project currently produces separated holmium oxide at commercial scale. Lynas and Iluka may add capacity from 2026, but meaningful volumes are not expected before 2027–2028.

Physical Properties [32]

Z: 67 · A_r: 164.930 u · ρ: 8.795 g/cm³ · T_m: 1,461 °C · T_b: 2,600 °C
Crystal: hcp · Config: [Xe]4f¹¹6s² · Ox. states: +3 · χ_P: 72,900 × 10⁻⁶ (highest of any element)

References

IMARC Group, “Holmium Prices 2026: Latest Price Chart, Index & Forecast,” Feb–Mar 2026. imarcgroup.com.
Rare Earth Exchanges, “China Rare Earth Price Index Climbs to 295.4,” Mar 2026. rareearthexchanges.com.
MOFCOM/GAC, Announcement No. 18/2025, “Export Control of Medium and Heavy Rare Earth Related Items,” 4 Apr 2025. english.mofcom.gov.cn.
SFA (Oxford), “China’s Rare Earth Export Controls and Their Impact on Global Supply Chains,” Oct 2025. sfa-oxford.com.
F. Gao, “China Implements New Export Controls on Rare Earth Tech,” 9 Oct 2025. fredgao.com.
Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, “China Suspends Export Controls on Certain Critical Minerals and Related Items,” Nov 2025. pillsburylaw.com.
State Council of the PRC, “Regulations on the Management of Rare Earths,” promulgated 26 Apr 2024, effective 1 Oct 2024. See IEA summary: iea.org.
Smart-Elements GmbH, Vienna. Ho product listings.
Luciteria Science, San Francisco.
Rare World Metals Mint (RWMM).
Metallos.de (Germany).
Thermo Fisher Scientific / Alfa Aesar. Ho metal and oxide products.
American Elements.
Stanford Advanced Materials.
ESPI Metals, Ashland, Oregon.
Edgetech Industries.
GoodFellow.
EarthRarest.com, citing Shanghai Metals Market.
BusinessAnalytiq, “Holmium Oxide Price Index,” Mar 2026. businessanalytiq.com.
MSE Supplies LLC. Ho₂O₃ 99.99% (4N).
MSE Supplies LLC. Ho₂O₃ 99.9999% (6N).
Chemsavers. Ho₂O₃ listing.
Sigma-Aldrich (Merck). Ho₂O₃ 99.999%.
Made-in-China.com. Ho and Ho₂O₃ supplier listings.
SFA (Oxford), “The Holmium (Ho) Market: Market and Price Drivers.” sfa-oxford.com.
Global Policy Watch, “Heavy Rare Earth Elements: Rising Supply Chain Risks and Emerging Policy Responses,” Feb 2026. globalpolicywatch.com.
Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, “Ex-China Rare Earths Premium to Grow, Especially for Heavies,” 2025–2026. source.benchmarkminerals.com.
Crux Investor, “China’s Rare Earth Export Controls and the Repricing of Supply Chains,” 2025. cruxinvestor.com.
Investing News Network, “Lynas Becomes First Heavy Rare Earths Producer Outside China,” 2025. investingnews.com.
Various: Mining Technology; CSIS, “Developing Rare Earth Processing Hubs,” 2026; Investing News Network, “Rare Earth Elements Prices 101.”
International Energy Agency, “With New Export Controls on Critical Minerals, Supply Concentration Risks Become Reality,” Oct 2025. iea.org.
Wolfram Alpha, “Holmium element.” wolframalpha.com.