Platinum Group Metals Market: Supply, Demand, Deficit and Outlook

What Is the Platinum Group Metals Market?#

The platinum group metals market is the physical and financial market for six metals mined together from a small number of deposits and priced through exchange futures, benchmark auctions and dealer quotes rather than on one central exchange. The LBMA Platinum and Palladium Price comes from auctions that start at 09:45 and 14:00 London time, administered by ICE Benchmark Administration since 1 July 2026, and NYMEX futures trade in 50-troy-ounce platinum and 100-troy-ounce palladium contracts (CFTC, 28 July 2026). Rhodium, iridium and ruthenium trade on dealer quotes such as Johnson Matthey's base prices, set by its desks in the USA, Hong Kong and the UK; osmium has no wholesale refiner quote at all.

Who measures the fundamentals? Three publishers, each on its own definitions: the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC, with Metals Focus data), Johnson Matthey (JM) and, for mine output, the US Geological Survey (USGS). Their figures are never combined in one calculation.

The Six Platinum Group Metals and Their Market Identity#

Each platinum group metal trades under its own symbol, atomic number and CAS Registry Number: platinum (Pt, 78, CAS 7440-06-4), palladium (Pd, 46, CAS 7440-05-3), rhodium (Rh, 45, CAS 7440-16-6), iridium (Ir, 77, CAS 7439-88-5), ruthenium (Ru, 44, CAS 7440-18-8) and osmium (Os, 76, CAS 7440-04-2). The table adds each metal's leading supply country and largest demand segment, from Johnson Matthey's May 2026 figures for 2025 unless marked.

The group takes its name from platinum (Pt), element 78, and the metal's physical properties and uses are profiled on platinum (Pt), element 78.

Platinum Group Metal Supply#

Platinum group metal supply comes from primary mine production, concentrated in South Africa and Russia, and secondary supply from recycled autocatalysts, electronic scrap and jewelry. For platinum supply in 2025, Johnson Matthey counts 5,557 koz (172.8 t) of primary supply and 1,547 koz of secondary supply, 7,104 koz combined. The series by country and year, 2021 to 2026, is on platinum supply.

What does the latest quarter show? Discovery Alert, summarizing WPIC's Q2 2026 Platinum Quarterly, reports refined platinum production of 1.47 Moz in Q2 2026, up 2% year on year, with South Africa at 1.08 Moz (+4%), Russia at 148 koz (-6%) and North America at 47 koz (-19%).

Platinum mining starts with reef ore grading 5 to 15 grams per tonne of total PGE (USGS Professional Paper 1802-N), which is milled, concentrated, smelted and refined into separate metals. Each step of that chain is explained on platinum mining.

Largest PGM Producers#

The largest PGM producers are South Africa's Impala Platinum and Valterra Platinum, Russia's Nornickel, and Sibanye-Stillwater, which mines in South Africa and the United States. Their totals cannot be added up: Implats and Valterra report six elements (the five PGMs other than osmium, plus gold), Northam and Sibanye-Stillwater's South African mines report four (platinum, palladium, rhodium and gold), and several companies refine each other's concentrate. The basis-by-basis ranking is on largest platinum producers.

The 13 producer pages are listed below with each company's latest reported output and its basis.

By country, four platinum producing countries supplied 5,344 koz of the world's 5,557 koz of primary platinum in 2025, on Johnson Matthey's basis. The table adds each country's primary palladium and its market page.

Russia leads palladium, not platinum: its 2,950 koz was 44.8% of 2025 primary palladium, and Johnson Matthey reports that virtually all Russian platinum has been exported to China, mainly via Hong Kong, since 2024. Output by country, including USGS mine-production estimates, is on platinum producing countries.

PGM Deposits and Geology#

The world's PGM deposits form in mafic and ultramafic intrusions, as thin reefs in layered complexes such as the Bushveld Complex and the Great Dyke, and as massive sulfide bodies at Norilsk-Talnakh in Russia. Four intrusions hold 92.3% of identified world PGE resources, according to USGS Professional Paper 1802-N (resources as of 2012): the Bushveld Complex 73%, Norilsk-Talnakh 10%, the Great Dyke 7.9% and the Stillwater Complex 2.2%. The Bushveld reefs differ in metal mix: the Merensky Reef and UG2 are platinum-dominant, while the Platreef is palladium-dominant or roughly equal in the two.

The 12 deposit and district pages are listed below with their USGS resource share where one exists.

Secondary Supply: Recycling#

Secondary supply adds to primary mine output when spent autocatalysts, electronic scrap and jewelry are refined back into metal, and it supplied an average of 24% of total platinum supply in the five years to 2024 (WPIC Platinum Essentials, 20 August 2025).

On Johnson Matthey's 2025 basis, platinum recycling reached 1,547 koz: 1,132 koz from autocatalysts, 330 koz from jewelry and 85 koz from electrical and other scrap. Recycled metal is identical to mined metal, and correct processing recovers well over 95% of the PGMs (WPIC, 2025). Recycling by metal and region is on secondary platinum supply.

Why can't recycling close a deficit quickly? Vehicles reach scrapyards at 12 to 16 years old on average (WPIC, 20 August 2025), and WPIC's Q1 2026 Platinum Quarterly reports lower-grade spent autocatalysts and working-capital constraints at recyclers.

Platinum Group Metal Demand#

Platinum group metal demand splits into automotive catalysts, industrial and chemical uses, jewelry, investment and electronics, with automotive the largest category for platinum, at 41.5% of its 8,019,000-ounce 2025 demand on Johnson Matthey's basis. On the WPIC/Metals Focus basis, the same year's platinum demand is 8,431 koz; both series are on platinum demand.

The six demand drivers below give JM's 2025 platinum demand and WPIC's Q2 2026 forecast for 2026.

• Autocatalysts: 3,329 koz in 2025 (JM); WPIC forecasts a 4% fall in 2026. See autocatalyst demand for platinum and palladium.
• Electric vehicles: battery electric cars, which need no exhaust catalyst, hold 16% of the light-vehicle market in 2025 and 28% by 2030 in WPIC's 11 June 2026 outlook. See electric vehicles and PGM demand.
• Hydrogen: PEM electrolyzers use about 400 kg of iridium per gigawatt today (US DOE, 2022). See platinum and the hydrogen economy.
• Industrial uses: chemical 614 koz, glass 428 koz and petroleum 213 koz in 2025 (JM); WPIC forecasts 5% growth in 2026. See industrial platinum demand.
• Jewelry: 1,507 koz in 2025 (JM); WPIC forecasts a 15% decline in 2026. See platinum jewelry demand.
• Investment: 556 koz in 2025 (JM); WPIC now forecasts 83 koz of net disinvestment in 2026. See platinum investment demand.

China adds a regional layer: WPIC, citing the exchange, reports that the Guangzhou Futures Exchange launched China's first platinum and palladium futures on 27 November 2025. Import and demand data are on China and the platinum market.

The other metals split differently: autocatalysts took 81.1% of 2025 palladium demand and 84.6% of rhodium demand (JM). Every end use is listed on uses of platinum group metals.

The 2026 Platinum Market Deficit-to-Surplus Swing#

The platinum market swung from a deficit of over 1.4 million ounces in 2025 to a forecast surplus of 265,000 ounces in 2026, according to WPIC's Platinum Quarterly for Q2 2026, published 9 September 2026. The Q1 2026 edition (18 May 2026) had put the 2025 deficit at 1,191 koz and forecast a 297 koz deficit for 2026, so the 2026 forecast moved 562 koz in one quarter. Trevor Raymond, WPIC's chief executive, says the swing is "overwhelmingly due to investment outflows that occurred during the first half of the year."

Investment carries the swing: WPIC now forecasts 83 koz of net disinvestment for 2026, against the 519 koz net inflow its Q1 2026 edition expected. Deficit size, causes and duration by year are on the platinum market deficit.

The table lists each published 2025-2026 platinum balance with its basis, source and confidence; positive values are surpluses.

Stocks stay thin: WPIC forecasts end-2026 above-ground stocks at 3.4 months of global demand, now reported in months of cover rather than ounces. Their definition and estimates are on above-ground platinum stocks.

Platinum Group Metals Market Outlook#

No single outlook is settled: Johnson Matthey's May 2026 balance still shows platinum in its fourth consecutive annual deficit, on JM's own supply and demand definitions, a different basis from WPIC's swing to surplus. JM's movement in stocks reads -677 koz for 2023, -559 koz for 2024, -915 koz for 2025 and a forecast -371 koz for 2026.

Will the balance hold? WPIC's five-year outlook (Platinum Essentials, 11 June 2026, published before the Q2 revision) projected deficits of 368, 268, 227 and 494 koz for 2027 to 2030, and it calculates that a 5% change in total mine supply moves the balance by an average of 275 koz a year over 2026 to 2029. Each house's forecasts and publication dates are compared on PGM market reports.

Mine supply faces cost pressure in South Africa. On 8 September 2026, Sibanye-Stillwater opened Section 189A consultations on restructuring its Kwezi shaft at Rustenburg, which lost R208 million in 2024 and R91 million in 2025, putting about 1,114 jobs at risk (Mining Weekly). The cost curve behind such decisions is on platinum mining costs.

Palladium's balance moves the other way: JM forecasts a 214 koz palladium surplus for 2026 as Russian shipments fall and demand drops 9%. The switch between the two metals in catalysts is covered on platinum-palladium substitution.

The Six PGM Sub-Markets#

Each platinum group metal has its own market: palladium, rhodium, iridium and ruthenium each have dedicated supply, demand and price dynamics, and world rhodium primary supply was 21.8 tonnes (701,000 ounces) in 2025 (Johnson Matthey, May 2026) against roughly 500-550 kg a year of osmium (SFA/IPA, May 2026). The table compares 2025 primary supply and Johnson Matthey's 2025 balance for all six.

All five metals Johnson Matthey covers were in deficit in 2025. Ruthenium's 293 koz shortfall is "almost a quarter of annual consumption" (JM, May 2026), the largest relative gap of the five, while no major research house publishes an osmium balance at all.

Track, Buy and Sell in the PGM Market#

PGM market participants use live prices to trade, dealer premiums to buy, and refiners to sell scrap, each covered on a dedicated page. This hub states no live price: its balances change quarterly, prices by the second.

The platinum price today, with palladium, rhodium, iridium, ruthenium and osmium quotes and their timestamps, is on platinum price today.

Buyers comparing bars, coins, ETFs, mining shares and futures, including the ticker symbols for platinum futures, use investing in platinum.

Scrap sellers are paid on assayed metal content, as explained on scrap platinum, palladium and rhodium.

PGM Market FAQ#

The three questions below cover producers, market capitalization and the 2026 swing.

Who is the largest producer of platinum?#

Impala Platinum and Valterra Platinum are the two largest PGM producers by reported output, and South Africa, where both mine, supplied 3,957 koz of the world's 5,557 koz of primary platinum in 2025 (Johnson Matthey). The five largest producers, ranked by reported PGM output, are listed below.

1. Impala Platinum (6E basis)
2. Valterra Platinum (5E+Au basis), which refined 1,556.0 koz of platinum in 2025
3. Nornickel (per metal), with 667 koz of platinum in 2025 (JM)
4. Sibanye-Stillwater (4E and 2E bases)
5. Northam Platinum (4E basis)

The bases differ, so the order is indicative; see largest platinum producers.

What is a "market cap" for platinum?#

"Market cap" for platinum means one of two things: the combined stock market value of PGM mining companies, covered on the producers page, or informally the total value of a year's platinum demand at the live price, which this site never states as a fixed number because the spot price moves continuously. As a worked example, if the spot price were S USD per troy ounce, 2025 platinum demand of 8,019 koz (JM basis) would be worth 8,019,000 × S USD. One dated market value does exist: abrdn Physical Platinum Shares ETF (PPLT) held assets of US$2.14 billion on 23 September 2026 (abrdn). ETF, stock and futures routes are compared on investing in platinum.

Why did the platinum market flip from deficit to surplus in 2026?#

The swing was driven by investment demand, not mine supply or industrial use: the World Platinum Investment Council, via Discovery Alert's summary of its Q2 2026 Platinum Quarterly, reports a 548,000-ounce surplus in H1 2026 followed by a forecast 283,000-ounce deficit in H2 2026, netting to the 265,000-ounce full-year 2026 forecast. Discovery Alert puts Q2 2026 platinum demand at 1.66 Moz, down 16% year on year.