Critical Mineral Price Benchmarks and Reporting Agencies
Facts checked against sources on . How we check facts.
A price reporting agency (PRA) publishes assessed prices for commodities that trade mostly in private contracts, and most critical minerals are in that category. Contracts usually refer to an agency assessment or to an exchange future that settles on one. Which benchmark applies depends on the mineral: the US Geological Survey cites Benchmark Mineral Intelligence for lithium, Argus Media for rare earth oxides, germanium and tungsten, S&P Global Platts and the London Metal Exchange for cobalt, and the London Metal Exchange for nickel. For lithium, futures on the CME, SGX, ICE and the London Metal Exchange all settle on Fastmarkets assessments.
2021
year the CME launched its lithium hydroxide future, settled on the Fastmarkets CIF China, Japan and South Korea assessment
Source: Fastmarkets, 13 January 2026
81,955 t
traded on the CME lithium hydroxide contract in the first nine months of 2026, against 124,606 t in all of 2025
$16.85/kg
October 2026 settlement of the CME lithium carbonate contract (hydroxide: $15.50/kg)
8,007 lots
open interest in CME lithium carbonate on 30 September 2026, a record monthly high
Which benchmark is used for which mineral?
The table lists the price sources named in the US Geological Survey's 2026 summaries and the lithium futures reference. It shows how fragmented the field is: no single agency covers every critical mineral, and some, like gallium, have no assessed benchmark in these sources at all.
| Mineral | Price series | Source named | Cited in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lithium carbonate | Spot and long-term contract assessments | Benchmark Mineral Intelligence | USGS lithium |
| Lithium carbonate and hydroxide | CIF China, Japan and South Korea assessment that CME, SGX, ICE and LME futures settle on | Fastmarkets | Fastmarkets |
| Rare earth oxides | Free-on-board price, such as neodymium-praseodymium oxide 99% minimum | Argus Non-Ferrous Markets | USGS rare earths |
| Cobalt | US spot cathode price, and LME cash price | S&P Global Platts Metals Week; London Metal Exchange | USGS cobalt |
| Nickel | LME cash price | London Metal Exchange | USGS nickel |
| Germanium | European price for metal and dioxide, minimum 99.999% purity | Argus Non-Ferrous Markets | USGS germanium |
| Tungsten | Concentrate price, in-warehouse Rotterdam, per tonne unit of WO3 | Argus Tungsten Analytics | USGS tungsten |
| Gallium | Average customs value of US imports of gallium metal | US Census Bureau (not an assessed price) | USGS gallium |
USGS uses these series for its own annual tables. They are not a recommendation of which agency a contract should reference.
How is a price reporting agency assessment made?
An agency assessment is built from the trades, bids and offers that the agency's reporters collect from producers, consumers and traders for a defined specification and delivery point, and then published at a set time. Fastmarkets describes its lithium assessments as using transparent specifications and defined publication windows, and lists several for the same product: carbonate delivered cost, insurance and freight to China, Japan and South Korea in dollars per kilogram, ex-works China in yuan per tonne, and delivered duty paid to Europe and to the US and Canada. A contract picks one of them, so the delivery basis matters as much as the agency.
Why have futures become important for lithium?
Futures give lithium a visible forward curve and let producers and buyers hedge, but they still depend on an agency assessment. The CME lithium hydroxide contract launched in 2021 and settles on the Fastmarkets assessment for cost, insurance and freight China, Japan and South Korea. Its volumes hit weekly records in early 2026, with 8,296 t in the first full week of the year according to CME data cited by Fastmarkets. Hydroxide volume reached 81,955 t by 30 September 2026 against 124,606 t in the whole of 2025, and carbonate volume reached 17,172 t against 14,567 t. The London Metal Exchange chose Fastmarkets as its reference price partner for lithium futures, as reported by Mining.com. China's Guangzhou Futures Exchange runs a separate lithium carbonate contract, so a buyer can see two price signals in two currencies.
What are the limits of a benchmark?
- Thin markets. A market with few trades gives agencies little to assess. Germanium and gallium, which the USGS reports with European or customs-value prices rather than an exchange series, are examples.
- Specification. A benchmark covers one grade and delivery point. Prices quoted by dealers for a different grade or pack size will differ, as the gallium price page shows when it sets a dealer list price next to a reference range.
- Different series, different numbers. The USGS reports an average 2025 US contract price for lithium carbonate of $9,000 per tonne from Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, while spot carbonate in China moved from about $9,300 to about $10,300 per tonne during the year. The two are not the same thing.
- Government deals. A price floor like the $110 per kilogram agreed for MP Materials references a product price and is separate from the assessment a PRA publishes. See offtake agreements.
Frequently asked questions
What is a price reporting agency?
A price reporting agency is a company that assesses and publishes prices for commodities that trade mostly in private deals, using trade, bid and offer information collected from the market. Fastmarkets, Argus, S&P Global Platts and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence are examples cited for critical minerals.
What do CME lithium futures settle on?
CME lithium futures settle on Fastmarkets assessments. The CME lithium hydroxide contract, launched in 2021, settles on the Fastmarkets price for cost, insurance and freight to China, Japan and South Korea.
Who assesses rare earth oxide prices?
The US Geological Survey uses Argus Non-Ferrous Markets for its rare earth oxide prices, such as neodymium-praseodymium oxide 99% minimum on a free-on-board basis. It reported an average of $69 per kilogram for that oxide in 2025.
Why do critical mineral prices differ between sources?
Critical mineral prices differ between sources because each series covers a different grade, delivery point, date and method. For example the USGS reports an annual average contract price for lithium carbonate, while exchanges publish daily settlements.
Sources
Read on October 12, 2026. Figures on this page come from these documents; where a number is an estimate, the source says so.
- Fastmarkets: CME lithium hydroxide future contracts in record start to 2026 (13 January 2026)
- Fastmarkets: Lithium carbonate prices. Describes the carbonate assessments and delivery bases
- Battery-Tech: CME lithium contract open interest (6 October 2026). Reports Fastmarkets data
- Mining.com: London Metal Exchange and Fastmarkets to set lithium price benchmark
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026. Price footnotes in the lithium, rare earths, cobalt, nickel, germanium, tungsten and gallium chapters
