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Rhenium is considered a strategically relevant raw material due to its rarity and importance for high-tech applications. The aerospace industry in particular is reliant on stable supply chains.
As supply and demand are heavily dependent on a small number of countries and copper and molybdenum production, the market can react sensitively to production shortfalls or fluctuations in demand. Accordingly, the price of rhenium is traditionally very volatile.
The importance of rhenium for industry, aerospace and security-relevant high technologies is underlined by the inclusion of the technology metal in the final US list of critical minerals in 2025. However, rhenium has not yet been included in the European Union's list of critical and strategic raw materials.
The importance of rhenium is likely to remain high in the future, particularly due to its role in nickel-based superalloys for aircraft engines and gas turbines. As rhenium is predominantly a by-product of copper and molybdenum processing, there is only limited scope for targeted expansion of supply. At the same time, increasing requirements in terms of efficiency, temperature resistance and service life of high-temperature components suggest that demand will remain stable.
U.S., Japan, Australia, and India Seek to Mobilize $20 Billion for Critical Minerals.
On Wednesday, Chinese customs authorities released a series of data on foreign trade involving critical raw materials.
Latest customs data from Beijing reveals a dramatic collapse in Chinese exports of both critical metals.
The latest customs data from Beijing shows exports of both critical materials collapsed in April, with gallium shipments reduced to just 3 kilograms and germanium to virtually zero. China exported just 3 kilograms of gallium in April, all of which went to Malaysia. No other country received any shipments. The figure marks a collapse of more than
IEA and OECD report shows progress, but ongoing barriers such as high costs and lack of international standards.
According to the Financial Times, quoting U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, countries seeking to diversify their supply chains would have to be willing to pay a premium for materials sourced outside China.
Current trade data from China indicates a noticeable change in the supply of the strategically important metals gallium and germanium.
Chinese customs authorities published a series of data on foreign trade in critical raw materials and components made from them.
In March, only a few countries such as Russia and Germany received shipments of these critical raw materials.
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