Baotou to start rare earths trading exchange

SHANGHAI -- China's Baotou Steel Rare-Earth Hi-Tech Co Ltd will join six other firms to invest a total of 70 million yuan ($10.98 million) to start a rare earths trading platform in early August, the firm said in a statement late on Friday.

Each shareholder will invest 10 million yuan and hold around 14.29 percent stake in the company, said Baotou Rare Earth, China's top rare earths producer.

Baotou said the exchange will help to establish a unified physical trading platform, allowing more transparency in prices.

China is the world's top rare earth producer and accounts for more than 95 percent of the global output. The exchange will help the country exert more control over the pricing of 17 strategically important rare earth metals on the global market.

Currently, prices in China are published by several independent consultancies and most of the metals have fallen over the past few months due to weaker demand.

The exchange will be located in Baotou city in China's Inner Mongolia region, home to nearly half of the world's light rare-earths production, Baotou said.