Cheaper Rhodium May Oust Palladium from Autocatalysts

Bloomberg reported that rhodium and palladium prices are the closest they have been in at least 12 years, meaning that car makers are likely to start using more rhodium in catalytic converters.

As quoted in the market news:

An ounce of rhodium bought 1.3 ounces of palladium on July 24, the lowest since at least January 2001, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Deutsche Bank said the ratio was the lowest in 20 years. Rhodium fell 8.3 percent this year to $990 an ounce while palladium rose 5.1 percent to $739.88 an ounce.

‘Given that rhodium is much better than palladium at treating nitrous oxide gases and given that the ratio has gone close to parity, it makes sense if you’re an auto manufacturer and want to capitalize to add more rhodium to the mix,’ said Grant Sporre, an analyst at Deutsche Bank in London, in an interview. ‘Rhodium does look interesting at these levels.’

Click here to read the full Bloomberg report.