The Korean government recently held the 42nd emergency meeting of the Central Economic Response Headquarters and announced the 2.0 version of measures for the development of the rare metal industry. The government has decided to double the reserves of important rare metals such as tungsten, molybdenum and rare earths to ensure the consumption of 100 rare metals, and to develop and cultivate 100 large core enterprises of rare metals by 2025. Previously, the country's reserves of rare metals averaged only 57 days.
The main rare metals Korea imports include silicon, nickel, lithium, palladium, molybdenum, titanium and so on. The prices of these rare metals have increased 1.5 to 2.5 times over the past year. South Korean ministry officials said, at present the rare metals demand has risen sharply, the world to ensure that these metal competing, but focus on storage and production parts, always carries the risk of the unbalance of supply and demand, so the government will be rare metal industry development countermeasure of the emphasis on establishing stable supply system.
In March 2020, the Japanese government decided to increase its strategic stockpile of rare metals, including rare earths. In accordance with the new international resource strategy, the Government increased the total 60-day reserves by category and increased them to 180 days in some categories. The South Korean government's move to double its reserves of important rare metals such as tungsten and molybdenum is clearly the same as the Japanese government's decision last year. Mineral resources countries, such as Japan and South Korea have to increase the number of rare metal reserves, demonstrating the rare metal for the future situation of supply and demand determine a more consistent, also suggests that increasing number of rare metal reserves the urgency and importance of the future will be big probability driven market demand increase, and the rare metal prices rose further. Relevant domestic mining enterprises should actively follow the market trend and adjust the corresponding trade business and production rhythm.
