Tungsten Intermediate product APT (ammonium paratungstate) has seen prices leap this week as Chinese suppliers hold back as export licenses approach exhaustion .
APT prices have climbed to US$246-256/mtu from US$240-246/mtu with material reported to be difficult to find. Market participants see prices climbing to US$270/mtu by December. China has been cutting quoted tonnages in export licenses since 2007 as it moves to preserve its asset base. Cjoma produces close to 80% of the worlds output. The dynamics for the tungsten market bare similarities to rare earths where China typically dominates supplies but is cutting back in an effort to preserve its asset base and keep these essential materials for domestic consumption, leaving western consumers increasingly concerned over security of supply. US consumers are reported to be saying that if China cuts licenses again this year then there wont be enough tungsten for the rest of the world. Tungsten has many specialist properties including: high density, very high melting point and is the second hardest of all elements making it essential for many specialty applications including military ones. The EU has already declared tungsten as a critical raw material, and Japan has categorized it similarly.
This has to be good news for HAZ.
HAZ Price at posting:
14.6¢ Sentiment: Buy Disclosure: Held
