Antimony

Antimony is a lustrous, silvery-white metal with a brittle texture. It is mainly sourced from stibnite ore and is known for its use as a flame retardant. China, Russia, and Bolivia are the leading producers of antimony. The metal is used in the production of lead-acid batteries, flame retardants, and ceramics, making it crucial for industrial applications.

Sub-Category	Abbreviation	Core Content Range	Size Range
Antimony Metal	Sb Metal	Various	n/a

Please note that the above listed sub-categories including its core content and size ranges are just a snapshot of Metalshub’s currently traded raw materials. We are adding new sub-categories on a monthly basis and would be happy to assess your specific requirements to this category.

Metalshub provides producers and consumers of antimony with a software solution to improve the way they buy or sell it. Our software connects over 2,000 companies in a joint trading network. This allows sellers to discover new buyers of antimony and buyers to discover new suppliers of antimony.

For buyers, Metalshub’s Procurement Solution allows refractory producers and other industrial minerals consumers to digitalise their procurement process in order to increase sourcing efficiency, ensure compliant buying, and take data-driven decisions. For sellers, Metalshub’s Sales Solution allows miners, traders, and other sellers to digitalise their sales process, manage inventory, and optimise their sales book.

Prices for antimony are provided by various well-established platforms:

1. Fastmarkets: Fastmarkets offers journalistic price assessments and market analysis for antimony, covering factors like supply tightness and demand across industries such as flame retardants and photovoltaics​ (Fastmarkets).
2. Argus Media: Argus provides journalistic price assessments for antimony, including different grades like 99.65% ingot FOB China. They also offer real-time data, trends, and tools for users to analyse price movements across regions ​(Argus Media)​.
3. Shanghai Metals Market (SMM): SMM tracks journalistic antimony prices for various forms, including antimony ingots and compounds, giving users access to current and historical price data​ (Shanghai Metals Market)​.

Beyond these three examples, other providers may also provide prices.

The main producers of antimony are:

• China – ~55% of global production, the largest producer and consumer.
• Russia – ~10%, with significant deposits of stibnite.
• Bolivia – ~10%, primarily exporting raw antimony and refined products.
• Tajikistan – ~5%, focusing on mining and processing stibnite.
• Myanmar – ~5%, with emerging production capabilities.

Some of the key producers of antimony include:

• Hunan Gold Group (China) – ~15% of the global antimony market.
• GeoProMining (Russia) – ~10%, a significant supplier to global markets.
• Empresa Minera Unificada (Bolivia) – ~10%, focused on antimony exports.
• United States Antimony Corporation (USA) – ~5%, with production focused on North America.
• Consolidated Murchison (South Africa) – ~5%, producing refined antimony products.

Antimony is primarily extracted from stibnite (Sb2S3) ore through mining. The ore is crushed, concentrated, and then roasted to produce antimony oxide, which can be further refined into metallic antimony. Various forms of antimony, such as antimony metal, are used across industries for their fire retardant and alloying properties.

Antimony is mainly used in flame retardants (~60%), lead-acid batteries (~20%), and ceramics (~10%). In steel and metalworking, antimony is alloyed with lead to increase hardness and durability, especially in battery grids and solder. Sub-categories like antimony metal are crucial for industrial processes requiring fire resistance and strength.