SCARCEEARTH

SCARCEEARTH

Critical Minerals Intelligence

Commodity prices updated live and weekly. Stock quotes reflect previous close daily. Policy countdowns and export controls updated as events develop.

Live prices, policy countdowns, export controls, and supply-chain risk for the minerals powering energy, defense, and AI infrastructure.

The materials the digital economy runs on are controlled by one country. These are the prices, the chokepoints, and the countdowns.

Live DataUpdated Jul 6, 4:24 PM UTC
30minerals tracked
5active export controls
179days to DFARS
03

Policy Countdown

Time remaining until key regulatory deadlines reshape demand and procurement.

Watch
178
Days Remaining

DFARS 252.225-7052

U.S. domestic rare-earth requirement takes effect

07
Hrs
35
Min
00
Sec
January 1, 2027
Imminent
86
Days Remaining

NDAA Rare-Earth Provisions

National Defense Authorization Act enforcement window

07
Hrs
35
Min
00
Sec
October 1, 2026
Tracked
1,274
Days Remaining

EU Critical Raw Materials Act

Domestic production / refining targets due

07
Hrs
35
Min
00
Sec
January 1, 2030
01

Commodity Prices

Spot prices for 30 critical and precious minerals. Cached 30 minutes server-side to respect upstream rate limits.

▶About this data

Precious and industrial metal prices sourced from Metals API, updated every 30 minutes. Rare earth and specialty mineral prices sourced from Shanghai Metals Market (SMM) domestic China industrial benchmark, converted to USD, and verified and updated weekly. Stock quotes reflect previous close via Finnhub. All prices are for informational purposes only.

Precious
4
Gold
XAU · USD/oz
▼ -0.99%
-41.60
4,142.00
oz
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Silver
XAG · USD/oz
▼ -2.00%
-1.26
61.58
oz
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Platinum
XPT · USD/oz
▼ -1.58%
-26.00
1,624.00
oz
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Palladium
XPD · USD/oz
▼ -1.42%
-18.00
1,246.00
oz
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Industrial
5
Aluminum
ALU · USD/t
▲ +0.84%
+25.88
3,119.18
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Zinc
ZNC · USD/t
▼ -0.03%
-1.15
3,544.85
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Tin
TIN · USD/t
▼ -0.01%
-4.02
52,240.87
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Iron Ore
IRON · USD/t
— —
—
98.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Battery
5
Lithium
LITHIUM · USD/t
— —
—
25,128.46
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Cobalt
LCO · USD/t
— —
—
56,290.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Nickel
NI · USD/t
— 0.00%
0.0000
16,115.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Manganese
MN · USD/t
— —
—
2,400.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Graphite
NA-GR · USD/t
— —
—
546.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Rare Earth
8
Neodymium
ND · USD/kg
— —
—
145.88
kg
Jan '23 – now

Nd oxide, SMM domestic China industrial benchmark. Not NdPr mixed oxide (upstream feedstock).

Deep Dive →
Dysprosium
DYS · USD/kg
— —
—
261.63
kg
Jan '23 – now
~$930/kg
Western retail · strategicmetalsinvest Jun 16 · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Terbium
TERBIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
1,179.54
kg
Jan '23 – now
~$4,029/kg
Western retail · strategicmetalsinvest Jun 12 · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Yttrium
YTTRIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
7.00
kg
Jan '23 – now
$120–270/kg
Intl CIF (peak >$1,500/kg) · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Praseodymium
PRASEODYMIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
149.19
kg
Jan '23 – now
NdPr $99.61/kg
SMM-RE-OX-001 (May 1) · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Scandium
SCANDIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
3,321.91
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Lanthanum
LTH · USD/kg
▲ +0.05%
+0.0014
2.88
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Samarium
SAMARIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
9.77
kg
Jan '23 – now
Energy
2
Vanadium
VANADIUM · USD/lb
— —
—
5.35
lb
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Uranium
URANIUM · USD/lb
— 0.00%
0.0000
85.70
lb
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Specialty
12
Tungsten
TUNGSTEN · USD/mtu
— —
—
1,003.00
mtu
Jan '23 – now
$3,050/mtu
Rotterdam CIF · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Molybdenum
MO · USD/lb
— —
—
33.70
lb
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Titanium
TITANIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
7.30
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Magnesium
MG · USD/t
— —
—
2,550.00
t
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Antimony
ANTIMONY · USD/t
— —
—
23,700.00
t
Jan '23 – now
~$51,800/t
Western spot · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Bismuth
BMTH · USD/kg
— —
—
20.00
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Hafnium
HAF · USD/kg
— —
—
12,508.00
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Rhenium
RHENIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
7,283.30
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
Gallium
GALLIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
288.82
kg
Jan '23 – now
$2,269/kg
Western retail · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Germanium
GER · USD/kg
— —
—
3,417.36
kg
Jan '23 – now
~$6,150/kg
In-whs USA · SMM June 1 · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Indium
INDIUM · USD/kg
— —
—
775.34
kg
Jan '23 – now
$717.50/kg
In-whs USA · SMM July 1 · domestic now above Western · export control spread
Deep Dive →
Tellurium
TE · USD/kg
— —
—
115.00
kg
Jan '23 – now
Deep Dive →
The Week in Minerals

Prices, dual-market spreads, and supply chain intelligence — every Saturday.

Subscribe free

02

Equity Watchlist — Critical Minerals

Public miners, processors, and explorers grouped by exposure. Prices as of previous close — updated daily via Finnhub.

04

Export Restriction Tracker

Current trade controls on critical mineral flows. Severity reflects estimated impact on global supply.

JurisdictionMeasureStatusSeverity
ChinaGallium & Germanium export restrictionsActiveSevere
ChinaGraphite export controlsActiveHigh
ChinaRare-earth processing controlsActiveHigh
USAAntimony import restrictionsActiveModerate
IndonesiaNickel ore export banActiveModerate
ChinaMineral Resources Law — Implementation Regulations

36 minerals in national strategic catalog confirmed. Dynamic list mechanism — additions possible with 14 days notice. Foreign mining investment now subject to national security review.

79 articles, 8 chapters. Signed by Premier Li Qiang May 20, 2026. Gives Beijing authority to set total mineral output quotas, conduct security reviews on foreign mining investment, and establish formal physical, capacity, and in-ground strategic reserves.

Active

Active — June 15, 2026

Severe
ChinaSolvent extraction reagent export controls — P507, P204, N235, C272. Process chemicals required to operate every commercial-scale rare earth separation plant outside China. C272 extends controls into battery metals processing.

Rare earth separation reagents (all REE supply chains); battery metals processing via C272

Controls implemented by MoFCOM November 2025. Currently suspended until November 10, 2026 — not lifted, paused. Can be reactivated at any time for any destination. A fully constructed separation facility cannot operate without ongoing extractant supply if controls resume.

Pending

Suspended · expires Nov 10, 2026

Severe
ChinaOutbound Investment Regulations (National Order No. 837)

Critical minerals broadly (integrates export controls into outbound investment framework)

Issued May 5, published June 1. Integrates export control restrictions into outbound investment activity. Creates legal basis for countermeasures against foreign entities. Directly relevant to mining sector supply chain relationships.

Active

takes effect July 1, 2026

Severe
05

Supply Chain Risk

Single-country or single-region concentration across each link in the critical-minerals chain.

Rare Earth Processing

Heavy & light REEs processed almost entirely inside China.

Critical
China controlled90%

Lithium Refining

Refining capacity concentration despite distributed mining.

High
China controlled65%

Cobalt Supply

Single-country mining exposure with ESG complications.

High
DRC sourced70%

Gallium / Germanium

Export licensing active; thin substitution options.

Critical
China controlled80%

Graphite Anode

Synthetic & spherical anode processing largely China-only.

Critical
China controlled95%

Nickel Processing

Indonesia's HPAL build-out shifts global pricing.

Moderate
Indonesia dominant50%

Tungsten Supply

Domestic China APT $929/mtu vs Rotterdam CIF ~$3,050/mtu — a 3x price divergence reflecting export control decoupling. Almonty's Sangdong mine (South Korea) commissioned Phase 1 in March 2026, designed to supply ~40% of Western demand at full capacity. Source: Almonty Industries press release March 16, 2026; SMM May 25, 2026; Fastmarkets.

Critical
China controlled88%

Yttrium Refining

Scarcity is industrial, not geological — ore is distributed globally but ~99% of refining is China-based. Domestic price ~$7/kg; international CIF $120–270/kg after April 2025 export controls. Peak quotes over $1,500/kg. Widest export-control-driven price split on this site.

Critical
China controlled99%

Sulfuric Acid

Dual chokepoint — the Mahshahr petrochemical complex in Iran (one of the largest sulfur export hubs on the Persian Gulf) was struck by Israeli airstrikes on June 8–9, 2026. The Hormuz closure cuts what moves. The Mahshahr strike cuts what gets made. Two simultaneous chokepoints on the same supply chain.

Critical
Persian Gulf sourced45%

Tungsten Hexafluoride (WF6)

Kanto Denka and Central Glass permanently halted WF6 production July 1, 2026. Japan controlled 25% of global WF6 — the critical CVD precursor for memory chips and 3nm+ logic. No alternative source identified after five months of stockpile drawdown. China's tungsten export controls reduced high-purity tungsten powder shipments to Japan to near zero in early 2026.

Critical
China controlled75%

REE Solvent Extraction Reagents

China's MoFCOM implemented export controls on P507, P204, N235, and C272 solvent extraction reagents in November 2025 — the process chemicals required to operate every commercial-scale rare earth separation plant outside China. Currently suspended until November 10, 2026. Controls can be reactivated at any time for any destination.

Critical
China controlled80%
06

The Reagent Layer

Processing chemicals that make the supply chain work

Sulfuric Acid
H₂SO₄
$90/t
Jul '22 – now

The solvent that dissolves ore into metal. Nearly half the world's traded sulfur comes from the Persian Gulf.

Deep Dive →
Hydrofluoric Acid
HF
$1,770/t
Jul '22 – now

No chip can be fabricated without it. China controls 62% of the fluorspar feedstock that makes it.

Deep Dive →
Sodium Cyanide
NaCN
$1,780/t
Jul '22 – now

The chemical that extracts 90% of the world's gold. China makes 40–45% of global supply.

Deep Dive →
Solvent Extraction Reagents
D2EHPA · PC88A · Cyanex 272
Contract-Negotiated

The organic chemicals that separate neodymium from praseodymium. China runs 85–91% of global rare earth separation capacity.

Deep Dive →
Oxalic Acid
C₂H₂O₄
$420/t
Jul '22 – now

The final precipitation step in rare earth processing. Consumed every cycle, sourced 70% from China, absent from most supply chain risk maps.

Deep Dive →
Tungsten Hexafluoride
WF₆
$257/kg
Jul '22 – now

Japan's two WF6 producers permanently halted July 1, 2026 — removing 25% of global high-end capacity. The CVD precursor gas advanced chips require has no confirmed replacement at commercial scale.

Deep Dive →
06

Latest Intelligence

Keyword-filtered headlines from nine industry and defense sources. Only articles relevant to critical minerals, export controls, and strategic supply chains surface here.