Zinc · Zn
base_metal · primary
Bottom line
Zinc sits on 2 federal critical-minerals lists; mine supply is moderately concentrated (HHI 0.20, 2025), led by 🇨🇳 China at 39% of output. The US is 73% net import-reliant (2025). Prices rose 3% over the past year (-1%/yr over 4y).
At a glance
Headline indicators
Price · 2026 YTD
3,447$/mt
World Bank Pink Sheet · mean of 8 of 12 months
Price trend
+3% 1Y
-1%/yr · 4Y CAGR
US net import reliance · 2025
73%
Mine production HHI
0.20
Moderate · 2025
From ore to use
lifecycle flow
- 01Reserves
240.0Mt
Australia leads · 27% share
- 02Production
12.0Mt
China top · 2024
- 03Trade
12.0Kt
net exporter · 2025
- 04Stocks
110.0Kt
year-end · 2025
- 05Consumption
7.0Mt
China · 2023
Coverage
Data coverage notes
- datedMaterial-flow analysis is historical - All 20678 material-flow records date to 2012 or earlier (Yale STAF era). They describe the anthropogenic cycle of that period, not today's system.
- datedExport-restriction inventory ends 2020 - The OECD industrial-raw-materials inventory (vendored snapshot) reports HS-line measures only through 2020; restrictions enacted since are not reflected in the measure table.
Methodology
How strata reads a commodity
The eight-stage lens, the observed-vs-estimated membrane, stage-honest supply, per-stage concentration, ownership resolution and the demand lens - the full method is illustrated live on copper, nickel and lithium.
Provenance
Where this data comes from
- BGS World Mineral Statistics
midstream_components_seed
ownership_control_seed
sec_edgar_ex96_pdf
- Statistics Canada Table 16-10-0022
- USGS DS-140 (constant 1998 USD)
- USGS DS-140 (nominal)
- USGS MCS (LME)
- USGS MCS (North American)
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries 2026
- USGS Mineral Commodity Summaries World Data (legacy wide format, 2023-2025 vintages)
- USGS Mineral Industry Surveys
- USGS Minerals Yearbook OFR 2025-1047
- USGS Minerals Yearbook Vol III, reference year 2019
usgs_critmin_deposits_v3
usgs_deposit_gt
usgs_mine_waste
usgs_mrds_2016
usmin_critical_deposits
- World Bank Pink Sheet
21 sources · titles open the source card · url opens the publisher