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Precious metal ore: top exporters and importers (2024)

In 2024, world trade in precious metal ore totaled $18.1 billion (4.5 million tonnes). The top exporters were Peru (13%), Russia (11%) and Australia (9%); China accounted for 57% of imports, followed by Germany (13%) and South Korea (7%). Compared with 2019, the value rose 101%.

Summary

World trade
$18.1billion
Tonnes
4.5million tonnes
Price per tonne
$3,954
The largest flows between countries. Width: value; color: estimated transport mode.SeaAirLand

Top exporters

  1. Peru$2.3 billion · 12.9%
  2. Russia$2 billion · 11%
  3. Australia$1.7 billion · 9.3%
  4. South Africa$1.4 billion · 7.5%
  5. Bolivia$1.1 billion · 6.2%
  6. Indonesia$1.1 billion · 5.9%
  7. Bulgaria$927 million · 5.1%
  8. Ecuador$806 million · 4.4%
  9. Canada$739 million · 4.1%
  10. Mexico$629 million · 3.5%
  11. Papua New Guinea$472 million · 2.6%
  12. Brazil$436 million · 2.4%
  13. Argentina$415 million · 2.3%
  14. United States$410 million · 2.3%
  15. Kazakhstan$343 million · 1.9%
  16. Colombia$308 million · 1.7%
  17. Turkey$251 million · 1.4%
  18. Georgia$230 million · 1.3%
  19. Tajikistan$211 million · 1.2%
  20. Kyrgyzstan$206 million · 1.1%

Top importers

  1. China$10.3 billion · 56.9%
  2. Germany$2.4 billion · 13.5%
  3. South Korea$1.2 billion · 6.6%
  4. Philippines$630 million · 3.5%
  5. United Kingdom$624 million · 3.4%
  6. Japan$579 million · 3.2%
  7. Finland$343 million · 1.9%
  8. Peru$272 million · 1.5%
  9. Taiwan$251 million · 1.4%
  10. Belgium$207 million · 1.1%
    re-exports
  11. Bulgaria$205 million · 1.1%
  12. Switzerland$163 million · 0.9%
  13. Kazakhstan$125 million · 0.69%
  14. Canada$124 million · 0.68%
  15. Malaysia$106 million · 0.58%
  16. Namibia$104 million · 0.57%
  17. India$77 million · 0.43%
  18. Sweden$77 million · 0.42%
  19. Mexico$57 million · 0.31%
  20. Uzbekistan$50 million · 0.28%

Trend

Who sells it

Peru has been the top exporter since 2024

Value in USD billions. The five largest exporters in 2024.

  • Peru 2.3
  • Russia 2
  • Australia 1.7
  • South Africa 1.4
  • Bolivia 1.1

Source: CEPII BACI

Show the numbers
Country19952024
Peru0.022.3
Russia0.032
Australia< 0.011.7
South Africa0.121.4
Bolivia0.061.1

Price

Implied price

The price per tonne stayed close to $3,954 since 1995

Current US dollars per tonne: value over the weight reported by BACI.

  • 2024: $3,954

Source: CEPII BACI

Show the numbers
YearUSD per tonne
1995$4,077
1996$5,407
1997$3,779
1998$4,611
1999$3,293
2000$2,295
2001$4,142
2002$4,642
2003$4,077
2004$2,663
2005$3,424
2006$4,141
2007$4,026
2008$6,794
2009$7,495
2010$7,620
2011$10,156
2012$6,098
2013$4,896
2014$3,688
2015$3,514
2016$5,512
2017$3,977
2018$3,255
2019$3,698
2020$3,917
2021$4,715
2022$4,460
2023$4,548
2024$3,954

What it includes

  • 2616 · Precious metal ore

Products in the same chapter

Sources and methodology

Sources and licenses

Methodology

Goods trade from CEPII BACI (BACI_HS92_V202601), which reconciles what exporters and importers report: countries that stopped reporting (Russia since 2022) appear with their partners’ data. FOB values in current US dollars; tonnes when BACI reports them. The price per tonne is the value of the rows with a weight divided by that weight. The transport mode is our own estimate based on value per kilo and geography. Data up to 2024.

Hong Kong, Singapore, the Netherlands and Belgium re-export goods from other countries: their figures include transit.

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