Global production of molybdenum rose by 1% in 2019 to 575.4 million pounds from 571.5 million pounds in 2018, figures released recently by the International Molybdenum Association (IMOA) show. Global use was 569.6 million pounds in 2019, a fall of 2% from 583.2 million pounds the previous year.
China remained the largest producer at 205.6 million pounds in 2019, up 2% from 201.9 million pounds in 2018. Production in South America fell 4% to 187.2 million pounds from 194.9 million pounds in 2018. North America produced 141.8 million pounds, a rise of 5% from 134.9 million pounds in 2018. China’s production was 13% less in Q4, while North and South America both saw 1% increase in production.
China remained the largest user of molybdenum, at 217 million pounds in 2019 a rise of 1% from 214.5 million pounds in 2018. Europe remained the second largest user at 131.3 million pounds but this represented an 8% decrease from 143.3 million pounds in 2018. The USA, the fifth largest user of molybdenum, also saw an 8% decrease in use to 55.3 million pounds from 60 million pounds in 2018.
