Rhodium prices dipped this week in light trading as speculators and producers continued to lower their offers in the face of declining platinum and palladium prices.
The Platts New York Dealer rhodium price for physical transactions slipped this week to $710-$740/oz from $715-$750/oz last week.
Some sources said bids had fallen below $700/oz, while no sales were heard above the $740-$750/oz range.
Base prices of major European refiners Johnson Matthey of the UK and Engelhard Materials Services of Germany (a division of BASF) began the week at $750/oz but edged lower. JM ended the week at $740/oz while Engelhard closed the week at $745/oz.
"Every week it's losing a little more value, and unless there are good buyers, you're not going to see anything aggressive," one physical dealer in the Northeast said, putting the range at $690-$740/oz.
A PGM refiner said that despite the lower offers, only small amounts were changing hands.
"I think they're just sniffing around for some orders," the refiner said, putting the range at $710-$750/oz.
Though some trade sources attributed the lower offers to attempts by speculators and producers to reduce inventory for year-end accounting purposes, others said the lower offers were being driven by falling platinum and palladium prices.
NYMEX platinum for January delivery fell $76.30/oz this week, or 8.1%, while December palladium fell $73.70/oz, or 12%. Platinum is now at its lowest level for the year, while palladium is $10 above its lowest level August 26.
Like platinum and palladium, rhodium is used in automobile catalytic converters to reduce certain greenhouse gas emissions. But rhodium is far more dependent on automotive demand than are platinum and palladium, which have other industrial and retail consumer uses.
Rhodium production continues to outpace industrial demand, according to most trade sources.
"Part of the problem is that the regular mine contractual selling that goes on is not being absorbed by the industrial buyers," a second PGM refiner said, putting the range at $700-$740/oz. "I think that's where we're at now."
