Recently, driven by export controls on rare earths and overseas restocking demand, prices for some rare earth varieties have continued to rise. Concurrently, the strong first-quarter 2026 profit reports from leading domestic rare earth companies have further bolstered market expectations for an industry recovery, increasing investment interest in the rare earth sector. Boosted by this sentiment, the Huatai-PineBridge Rare Earth ETF (516780) has seen net capital inflows for three consecutive trading days since May, with an average daily turnover reaching 1.65 billion yuan. Its latest fund size stands at 31.94 billion yuan, highlighting its relatively strong liquidity advantage.
The industry's positive momentum has translated into corporate earnings, with leading companies delivering impressive performances. Taking a leading domestic light rare earth company as an example, its Q1 2026 report shows operating revenue of 118.59 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 27.69%; net profit attributable to shareholders reached 9.18 billion yuan, surging 113.12% year-on-year; and adjusted net profit was 8.83 billion yuan, up 103.21% year-on-year and 27.35% quarter-on-quarter. Meanwhile, the Q1 results of several other domestic rare earth enterprises have significantly exceeded market expectations, primarily benefiting from a notable year-on-year increase in the average prices of key products like praseodymium-neodymium oxide.
Rare earth prices are trending strongly upward amid persistently tight supply-demand dynamics. According to Wind data, the average price of praseodymium-neodymium oxide in Q1 2026 was 757,000 yuan per ton, representing a 33.7% increase quarter-on-quarter. The procurement price for rare earth concentrate from a leading company in Q2 is set at 38,804 yuan per ton (dry weight, REO=50%), excluding tax, marking a 44.6% increase from the previous quarter, which also underscores the high activity level in the rare earth industry. Data from a rare earth exchange indicates that spot supply of praseodymium-neodymium oxide remains tight, with upstream suppliers showing strong price support intentions, and metal prices remain firm due to cost underpinning.
The strategic value of rare earths is becoming increasingly prominent, with the supply-demand gap potentially widening. Some analyses suggest the global supply-demand gap for praseodymium-neodymium oxide may continue to expand. Against the backdrop of intensifying geopolitical competition and countries racing to build self-sufficient, controllable supply chains, the strategic importance of rare earths, often termed "industrial vitamins," has significantly increased. Simultaneously, fluctuations in the US dollar index and the performance of global technology stocks have drawn more attention to rare earth assets, which possess both industrial and financial attributes.
It is reported that the Huatai-PineBridge Rare Earth ETF (516780) is the market's first ETF focusing on the rare earth industry theme. It closely tracks the CSI Rare Earth Industry Index, which selects listed company securities involved in businesses related to rare earth mining, processing, trading, and application as its components to reflect the overall performance of listed companies in the rare earth industry. Its top five constituent stocks are China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co., Ltd., Xinjiang Goldwind Science & Technology Co., Ltd., Xiamen Tungsten Co., Ltd., Shenzhen Chengxin Lithium Group Co., Ltd., and GEM Co., Ltd., all of which are leading companies with strong competitiveness within the industry.
The product's annual report for 2025 shows that as of December 31, 2025, the number of holders of the Huatai-PineBridge Rare Earth ETF (516780) reached 60,300, making it the only rare earth theme ETF in the market at that time with over 50,000 holders.
As one of China's first ETF managers, Huatai-PineBridge Fund has been dedicated to the index investment field for over 19 years, creating transparent, easily tradable, and low-cost index tools for investors, such as the Huatai-PineBridge CSI 300 ETF (510300) and the Huatai-PineBridge CSI A500 ETF (563360). By the end of 2025, the ETFs under the company had cumulatively generated profits exceeding 164 billion yuan for holders over the previous two years, making it one of only four fund companies in the entire market during that period to achieve cumulative profits over one hundred billion yuan. In terms of fee structure, ETFs representing 77.8% of the company's ETF assets under management adopt the lowest-tier fee structure currently available in the market for equity index funds (management fee of 0.15% per annum + custody fee of 0.05% per annum).
A MACD golden cross signal has formed, indicating positive momentum for these stocks.
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