China’s largest rare earths producer, Baotou, has suspended production for one month in an effort to prop up falling prices, in the clearest signal yet that Chinese producers are intent on supporting prices at high levels.

　　中國最大的稀土生產(chǎn)商包鋼稀土(Inner Mongolia Baotou Steel Rare Earth)宣布停產(chǎn)一個月，以支撐不斷下降的稀土價格，這是迄今最為清晰的信號，表明中國礦商意圖維持稀土的高價。

　　China is the world’s biggest producer of rare earths, but tightening government controls and stockpiling has sent rare earths prices rocketing this year, with prices for some minerals increasing more than eight times during the first half of the year.

　　中國是世界最大的稀土生產(chǎn)國，但不斷收緊的政府控制和囤積使稀土價格今年飆升，有些稀土的價格在上半年暴漲了8倍多。

　　Rare earths prices have been sliding since their peak in July, but the slide has accelerated during the past week. Neodymium, which is used in magnets, has fallen 9 per cent, while Lanthanum, which is used in fuel catalytic converters, has fallen 12 per cent, according to prices from Shanghai Metals Market.

　　稀土價格在7月見頂之后就一直在下滑，但在過去一周下滑勢頭出現(xiàn)加速。根據(jù)上海有色網(wǎng)(Shanghai Metals Market)的價格數(shù)據(jù)，用于磁體的釹的價格下降了9%，用于燃料催化轉(zhuǎn)換器的鑭的價格下降了12%。

　　Baotou’s move suggests that Chinese efforts to control rare earths prices could be greater than previously thought. Traders have complained since last year that Chinese customs officials were forcing contracts to be rewritten to conform with a “secret list” of acceptably high rare earths prices, but that had less influence on the market during a time when prices were uniformly going up.

　　包鋼稀土的停產(chǎn)似乎表明，中國方面控制稀土價格的力度可能比人們之前想象的更大。交易商自去年起就抱怨，中國海關(guān)官員迫使當(dāng)事人改寫合同，以符合一個可接受的稀土漲價“秘密清單”，但在價格一致上漲的時期，這種做法的作用不那么大。

　　After cutting export quotas last year, Beijing has this year focused on cleaning up the rare earths industry at the source, closing illegal mines and processing centres that were previously sources of pollution. Those in the industry believe that the rare earths reforms have also been aimed at increasing state control over the previously fragmented sector. In May, the government announced that three state-owned groups would take the lead in reshaping the industry in the fragmented southern sector.

　　繼去年削減出口額度之后，北京方面今年把精力主要放在從源頭清理稀土產(chǎn)業(yè)，關(guān)閉曾經(jīng)是污染源的非法稀土礦和加工中心。業(yè)內(nèi)人士認(rèn)為，稀土行業(yè)改革的目的，還在于提高政府對這個此前分散化發(fā)展行業(yè)的控制。5月，政府宣布，三家國有集團(tuán)將在中國南方主導(dǎo)這一分散行業(yè)的重組。