Tungsten Soars 557% Amid Middle East War

When nations go to war, the military-industrial complex springs into action. Relatively obscure tungsten is often on the front lines.

A combination of tight supply, Chinese export restrictions, and heavy demand from military spending, including the current war with Iran, has jolted tungsten prices by 557% since last February, a far bigger increase than commodity stars like gold, silver, copper or oil.

The exceptionally hard, scarce metal withstands extreme temperatures, making it essential for applications ranging from lighting and electronics to aerospace, automotive, and defense. Canada, the United States, and the European Union have all classified tungsten as a critical mineral.

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The super-dense material is a key component in drilling equipment and armor-piercing weaponry. It is also used in helicopters, fighter jets, and ammunition. Tungsten alloys are commonly utilized in missile components, counterweights in aircraft and helicopters, artillery shells, grenades, and bullet-proof vehicles.

Military uses are set to increase 12% this year, according to Project Blue, a market intelligence firm focused on critical minerals.

Tungsten is a good example of why the United States and other countries must diversify supplies of critical minerals from China, which has controlled most of them for decades.

According to the US Geological Survey, in 2025, China produced 67,000 tonnes of tungsten out of a global market of 85,000t. The next closest competitor was Vietnam at 3,000 tonnes.

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The United States hasn’t produced any tungsten since 2015, when North American Tungsten went bankrupt and closed the Cantung mine on the border of the Canadian Yukon and Northwest territories.

Why is tungsten so valuable?

The main price driver is supply. Last February, Beijing added certain tungsten products to its list of export controls - a reaction to the US-instigated trade war. Project Blue says Chinese shipments of restricted tungsten products were down about 40% last year.

Moreover, tungsten output in China, the main supplier, has slipped from levels seen a decade ago amid deteriorating ore quality.

Rising defense spending is exacerbating the tightness.

Gains have accelerated in recent weeks as buyers exhaust stockpiles and conflict in the Middle East sharpens focus on military demand.

Bringing on more production is one way to loosen China’s tight grip on global tungsten supply. This week, Almonty Industries (:ALM) restarted the idled Sandong mine in South Korea - a facility that dates to the Japanese occupation between 1910 and 1945. 

US authorities contacted Almonty last month regarding immediate material availability. Almost half of its South Korean output is earmarked for Pennsylvania, where it’s used in munitions.

The Toronto-based company also seeks to restart a tungsten mine in Montana.

While mining could expand in other countries, including the US and Kazakhstan, Western output would take about two years to materialize - too late for current military procurement schedules.