Platinum supply is shrinking due to mining disruptions in South Africa, vanishing stockpiles, fierce global competition for the metal, and trade tensions that are locking up inventories. South Africa produces about 70 percent of the world’s platinum, but mines there have faced ongoing issues like power outages, labor strikes, and lower-than-expected output this year, creating the third straight annual deficit of around 692,000 ounces.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.htmlhttps://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/platinum-market-to-end-2025-with-692-koz-deficit-potential-easing-of-tariff-fears-leads-to-a-more-balanced-platinum-market-in-2026-302619223.htmlhttps://fortune.com/article/current-price-of-platinum-12-16-2025/
On top of that, aboveground stocks, which act as a buffer during shortages, have been drawn down over the past three years to unsustainably low levels, hitting a turning point around May 2025 that made the market feel much tighter.https://www.ipmi.org/news/platinums-80-surge-3-hidden-forces-driving-it These stockpiles provide liquidity in normal times, but with them nearly gone, even small deficits push prices up sharply, as seen with platinum doubling in value to a 17-year high.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.html
Geographic competition adds more pressure, with the US, Europe, and China all pulling on limited supplies in a three-way tug-of-war.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.htmlhttps://www.ipmi.org/news/platinums-80-surge-3-hidden-forces-driving-it In the US, over 600,000 ounces sit in warehouses as banks hoard metal to dodge potential tariffs from Washington’s Section 232 probe.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.html China has ramped up demand through robust exports and a new futures contract on the Guangzhou Futures Exchange that draws in speculators and physical metal, pushing local prices above global benchmarks.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.htmlhttps://www.ipmi.org/news/platinums-80-surge-3-hidden-forces-driving-ithttps://nai500.com/blog/2025/11/platinum-prices-hit-15-year-high-what-are-the-driving-forces/
This tightness shows up in sky-high borrowing costs, with one-month lease rates annualized at 14 percent in London, signaling traders won’t let go of their metal amid low inventories.https://ww.fashionnetwork.com/news/Platinum-hits-17-year-high-as-tight-supply-doubles-price-in-2025,1792918.html Trade tensions could keep this going into 2026 unless they ease, potentially turning a forecasted small surplus into another deficit.https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/platinum-market-to-end-2025-with-692-koz-deficit-potential-easing-of-tariff-fears-leads-to-a-more-balanced-platinum-market-in-2026-302619223.htmlhttps:/