As supply is squeezed by the AI growth, ruthenium prices reach a record high

Prices of ruthenium, a minor metal from the platinum-group metals category, have surged to a record high as tight supply and rising demand from artificial intelligence infrastructure push the market upward, according to analysts and producers.

Ruthenium is widely used in electronics, semiconductors and chemical processing. Demand for the metal has increased sharply as artificial intelligence drives expansion in cloud computing and large-scale data storage systems.

The rapid growth of AI-related infrastructure has boosted the need for data centres and hard disk drives, where ruthenium plays a key role in the magnetic layers used in advanced storage technology. As companies expand their data centre capacity to support AI workloads, demand for the metal has followed.

Prices have climbed dramatically over the past year. According to market data cited by LSEG using benchmark prices from Johnson Matthey, ruthenium was trading at around $1,750 per ounce on March 13. This represents a steep rise from roughly $560 per ounce a year earlier.

Analysts say the surge is also being driven by investor interest in metals linked to the artificial intelligence boom. Nicky Shiels said the metal is increasingly being viewed as a “precious proxy” for the global AI buildout, which may be encouraging investors to increase their exposure to the commodity.

At the same time, supply remains limited. Wilma Swarts expects the ruthenium market to face a deficit of about 203,000 ounces in 2026 as demand continues to outpace production.

Unlike many metals, ruthenium is not mined directly. It is produced only as a by-product of mining other platinum-group metals, which significantly limits the ability of producers to quickly increase supply. Most of the world’s production is concentrated in South Africa.

Production challenges in the country have also tightened supply. Data from Statistics South Africa shows that platinum-group metals output in the country fell 3.8 percent year-on-year in January 2025.

Mining companies say the decline reflects a longer-term trend. Northam Platinum noted that production of platinum-group metals in South Africa has been falling for several years due to limited investment in new mining projects over the past two decades.

With supply constrained and AI infrastructure continuing to expand globally, analysts expect strong demand for ruthenium to persist, keeping the market tight in the coming years.