China Likely to Cut Rare Metal Exports Quota 2-3% Per Year

China Securities Journal on November 3 quoted an unidentified source from China's Ministry of Commerce who said that the country's rare metal export quota will be cut by 2 percent to 3 percent annually.

The export quota for rare earth products, which are of more strategic significance, will be also be cut and most likely to a greater degree, the source said.

The Ministry of Commerce on Oct. 29 released the "Aggregate Export Quotas for Agricultural and Industrial Products for 2011" on Oct. 29.
 
Compared to the export quotas for 2010, the export quotas for most industrial products for 2011 are generally equivalent to that of 2010, with the aggregate export quotas for tungsten, stibium, silver and talc on a moderate rise and the quotas of tin and light and dead-burned magnesium on a moderate decline. "

The export quotas for rare metals will unlikely rebound in the future," said an industry insider, who helped draft related policies, during an interview with China Securities Journal.
 
The source said because it takes time for rare metal exporters to adapt to the changes, and a one-time drastic drop in export quotas will seriously affect the operations of the exporters, the annual average decline rate in the rare metal export quota is set between 2 and 3 percent. However, the decline rate in the export quotas for rare earth products is quite likely to be higher than that of other rare metals.