South Africa is the world's largest producer of rhodium by a significant margin, accounting for approximately 80% to over 90% of global supply. The country houses the majority of the world's reserves in the Bushveld Complex. Other minor producers include Russia, Zimbabwe, and Canada.
South Africa is the dominant producer, accounting for nearly 80% of global rhodium output. Russia and Canada account for the remaining 20% of global rhodium production, depicted in the graph shown.
This chart illustrates the breakdown of Canadian PGM mine production by element in 2023: palladium (75.4%), platinum (24.2%), and rhodium (0.4%).
Rhodium's all-time high occurred in March 2021, reaching nearly $30,000 per ounce, driven by extreme demand for automotive catalytic converters due to stricter emissions regulations, combined with limited supply from major producing regions like South Africa. This price surge made it significantly more expensive than gold, though it has since fallen, with prices fluctuating in the thousands of dollars, but remaining highly volatile.
Rhodium prices are dropping due to a combination of increased supply (from better mining recovery and recycling) and weakening demand, primarily driven by the shift towards electric vehicles (EVs) which use fewer internal combustion engine (ICE) catalytic converters, plus technological advancements reducing its use in other areas like fiberglass, and significant inventory destocking from major players like Chinese manufacturers. High prices previously incentivized efforts to use less rhodium, leading to a significant price collapse from its peak.
The major use of rhodium is in catalytic converters for cars (80%). It reduces nitrogen oxides in exhaust gases. Rhodium is also used as catalysts in the chemical industry, for making nitric acid, acetic acid and hydrogenation reactions.
Although the underlying metal may be magnetic, the rhodium plating itself is not magnetic. Thus, if you have a piece of jewelry that has been rhodium plated, it will not be magnetic.
Yes, it's completely legal for U.S. citizens to own a 400 oz gold bar, as there are no federal limits on how much gold bullion an individual can possess, a restriction that was lifted in 1974. You can buy, hold, and store them at home, but be aware of potential tax implications (capital gains) when selling for a profit and reporting requirements for large transactions (over $10,000) for anti-money laundering purposes.
The rarest metal on Earth is often considered rhodium, though iridium and osmium are also contenders, all part of the Platinum Group Metals (PGMs); rhodium is incredibly scarce (around 0.000037 ppm in the crust) and valuable, primarily used in catalytic converters, while iridium is valued for extreme hardness and corrosion resistance, and osmium is the densest, making them all extremely rare and expensive.
Canada produced 60 minerals and metals at almost 200 mines and 6,500 sand, gravel and stone quarries. The value of Canada's mineral production reached $71.9 billion in 2023. Gold was the top-ranked commodity by value of production in Canada in 2023 with a value of $14.4 billion.
South Africa accounts for approximately 80% of the world's platinum supplies, and its palladium production represents about 40% of the world's gross production. PGM is concentrated in South Africa's 2 billion-year old Bushveld Igneous Complex, especially in complexes found in the Limpopo and North West provinces.
Rhodium is found in platinum or nickel ores with the other members of the platinum group metals. It was discovered in 1803 by William Hyde Wollaston in one such ore, and named for the rose color of one of its chlorine compounds.
How to Purchase Rhodium
What is the most expensive metal in the world?
Hecla Mining Company (NYSE:HL) is the largest primary silver producer in the United States and Canada and the third largest in the world. Hecla 100% owns and operates mines in Alaska (Greens Creek), Idaho (Lucky Friday), Quebec, Canada (Casa Berardi), and Yukon Territory, Canada (Keno Hill).
Governments historically act decisively during economic crises—and what happened once could, theoretically, happen again. What's Changed Since 1933? The president no longer has unilateral authority to confiscate gold in peacetime.
Gold bars often come with unique serial numbers, which serve as identifiers and traceability tools. These numbers help track a bar's production history and confirm authenticity.
It's the finishing touch that elevates your ring from beautiful to breathtaking. But if you're wondering “How long will rhodium plating last?” the simple answer is: Usually 12–24 months — depending on how you wear your jewelry.
Samarium Cobalt, another rare earth magnet, is made up largely of Cobalt and Samarium and is the most expensive magnetic material to fabricate. Most of the cost is due to the high Cobalt content and the brittle nature of the Samarium alloy.
The “common knowledge” about rhodium is that it is most commonly found in automobile catalytic converters.
New Age Metals Further Demonstrates Presence of Rhodium at the River Valley Palladium Project near Sudbury, Ontario.
What metal is in a catalytic converter? Catalytic converters clean up emissions from gasoline and diesel vehicles using metal catalysts which usually contain platinum, palladium and rhodium.