Commodity Roundup: Ultra-rare metal ruthenium soars, outpacing gold and silver amid AI-fueled demand surge

July 17, 2025

Ruthenium, a silvery gray mineral, has eclipsed the headline-grabbing rallies in other commodities like gold (XAUUSD:CUR) and silver (XAGUSD:CUR) by nearly doubling in price over the past year to $800 an ounce, according to metals refiner Johnson Matthey. 

That matches its peak in 2021 and isn’t far off the all-time high of $870 hit 18 years ago, Bloomberg reported.

The platinum group metal is prized for its exceptional hardness and versatility across electronics, energy storage, and chemicals manufacturing. But it’s the AI revolution — particularly in hard disks — that’s driven recent gains, according to SFA (Oxford), a critical minerals consultancy, the report said.

“As AI rolls out, as data storage requirements increase, you need a technology which is still cheap, cost-effective and can store large quantities of data,” said analyst Sandeep Kaler.

Ruthenium remains scarce, with last year’s global supply totaling just 30 tons — primarily produced as a byproduct of platinum, according to Kaler. She noted that limited investment following years of weak prices is expected to further reduce output. As a result, the market is likely to shift into a deficit next year, with demand surpassing available supply.

Elsewhere, India is prepared to diversify oil imports if Russian supplies are affected by sanctions, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.

India can manage any disruptions to Russian imports by turning to alternative sources, Puri said, pointing to emerging suppliers like Guyana and increased availability from established producers such as Brazil and Canada.

Russia has become India's top crude supplier since the Ukraine conflict, now accounting for over 35% of India's total oil imports.

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