South African miners face a conundrum: increasing palladium and rhodium output to take advantage of soaring prices risks depressing the already fragile market for sister metal platinum. That’s because palladium and rhodium are mined as byproducts, with every extra ounce of the former typically coming with two to three additional ounces of platinum. Stricter emissions standards have boosted palladium and rhodium consumption in autocatalysts for gasoline cars. By contrast, the backlash against diesel vehicles, where most platinum gets used, has seen the metal languish.
