Permanent Magnets Market (2026-2036)

The growth of this market is mainly driven by the rapid growth of electric vehicles, which use high-performance rare earth magnets in their traction motors, the expansion of wind power, the growing use of efficient permanent magnet motors in industrial equipment and home appliances, and new demand from industrial and humanoid robots. However, factors such as the concentration of rare earth mining, refining, and magnet production in China, China's export controls on rare earths and magnets, and the volatility of rare earth prices are expected to restrain the growth of this market to some extent.

Permanent magnets are materials that produce a lasting magnetic field without needing an electric current, and they are essential components of electric motors, generators, sensors, actuators, speakers, and many other devices. The main types are neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets, which are the strongest and are made by sintering or bonding, ferrite magnets, which are low-cost and widely used in appliances and conventional motors, samarium cobalt (SmCo) magnets, which perform well at high temperatures and are used in aerospace and defense, and aluminum-nickel-cobalt (AlNiCo) magnets, which are used in sensors and instruments. This market covers the sale of finished permanent magnets of all these types, measured by their value and weight, and excludes rare earth oxides, metals, and alloys sold before magnet production.

NdFeB magnets account for most of the value of the market because of their very high magnetic strength, which allows smaller, lighter, and more efficient motors and generators. They are used in electric vehicle traction motors, wind turbine generators, industrial servo motors, robots, hard disk drives, smartphones, and inverter air conditioners. NdFeB magnets contain the light rare earths neodymium and praseodymium, and high-temperature grades also contain heavy rare earths such as dysprosium and terbium, which makes their supply chain closely linked to rare earth mining and refining. The price of NdFeB magnets therefore moves closely with the prices of NdPr oxide and heavy rare earths, which have been very volatile in recent years.

Ferrite magnets, made from iron oxide and strontium or barium carbonate, account for most of the volume of the market because they are cheap and do not use rare earths. They are used in small motors for cars, appliances, and power tools, as well as loudspeakers and other products. Although ferrite magnets are much weaker than NdFeB magnets, they remain important for cost-sensitive applications and are also being considered as alternatives to rare earth magnets in some motors to reduce supply risks. Ferrite magnet production is also concentrated in China, although Japan, South Korea, India, and other countries also produce ferrite magnets for local markets.

The magnet supply chain is highly concentrated in China, which accounted for about 94% of global sintered permanent magnet production in 2024, along with most rare earth refining. China's magnet industry includes large producers such as JL MAG, Beijing Zhong Ke San Huan, Ningbo Yunsheng, and Yantai Zhenghai, and Chinese NdFeB output has grown rapidly to serve domestic electric vehicle, wind, appliance, and electronics demand. Outside China, the main producers are Japanese companies such as Shin-Etsu Chemical, Proterial, TDK, and Daido Steel, Germany's VAC, and a small number of newer producers in the U.S., Europe, and South Korea. Japanese producers hold important patents and technical expertise in high-performance and low-heavy-rare-earth magnets, which gives them a strong position with automakers and electronics companies.

Supply chain security has become a major policy concern since China's export controls on rare earths and magnets in 2025 disrupted production at some automotive and industrial companies outside China and pushed up prices for NdPr and heavy rare earths. In response, the U.S., the EU, Japan, and other countries are supporting new mining, refining, and magnet production outside China, such as MP Materials' magnet plants in Texas, VAC's plant in South Carolina, Neo Performance Materials' plant in Estonia, and other projects, often backed by government funding, price floors, and long-term offtake agreements. Japan has also built up stockpiles and diversified its rare earth supply through investments in Lynas and other projects since China restricted exports to Japan in 2010.

Demand is expected to grow strongly over the forecast period, led by electric vehicles, wind power, efficient industrial motors, and robotics. Humanoid robots, in particular, could become a large new source of demand for NdFeB magnets because each robot uses many small, high-performance motors and actuators. At the same time, magnet makers and automakers are working to reduce the use of heavy rare earths through grain boundary diffusion and other technologies and to develop rare-earth-free motors and magnets, which could change the mix of demand over time. Value growth is expected to outpace volume growth because high-value NdFeB magnets are growing faster than lower-value ferrite magnets.

NdFeB magnets, which are much more expensive per kilogram than ferrite magnets, are growing faster than ferrite, so the mix of the market is shifting toward higher-value products.

Magnet users are qualifying suppliers outside China, signing long-term contracts, holding more inventory, reducing heavy rare earth content through grain boundary diffusion, and developing motors that use fewer or no rare earths, such as ferrite-assisted and externally excited motors.

Humanoid robots use dozens of high-performance motors and actuators, each of which relies on NdFeB magnets. If humanoid robots reach large-scale production over the forecast period, they could become one of the largest new sources of NdFeB demand, supporting the fast growth of the industrial and robotics segment.

Sintered NdFeB magnets are expected to account for the largest share of 66.5% of the market in 2026 and are also projected to register the highest CAGR.

Sensors and actuators are projected to register the highest CAGR, driven by robotics and automation, while electric motors hold the largest share.

Automotive is expected to account for the largest share of 36.0% of the market in 2026, while industrial and robotics is projected to register the highest CAGR.

Asia-Pacific is expected to account for the largest share of 78.0% of the market in 2026.

North America is projected to register the highest CAGR of 11.4% during the forecast period, supported by government-backed domestic magnet production.

The report profiles 14 companies, including JL MAG Rare-Earth, Beijing Zhong Ke San Huan, Ningbo Yunsheng, Shin-Etsu Chemical, Proterial, and TDK. The top five players account for an estimated 21.5% of the market in 2025.