China Northern Rare Earth Profit Jumps 120.46%; Zhang Jianping Exits Top Shareholder List

China Northern Rare Earth (Group) High-Tech Co. , Ltd. disclosed its 2026 semi-annual report on the evening of August 19. Revenue for the first half reached approximately RMB 25.8 billion, up 36.75% year on year. Net profit attributable to shareholders was about RMB 2.053 billion, up 120.46%, while net profit attributable to shareholders excluding non-recurring items was around RMB 2.051 billion, up 128.79%. The company produces rare earth products spanning 11 major categories, over 100 varieties and more than 1,000 specifications. During the reporting period, the rare earth market performed well overall, with mainstream product prices strengthening amid volatile trading. Upstream ore separation companies saw limited capacity release due to policy factors such as total rare earth mining quotas, keeping raw material supply relatively tight. Downstream demand grew steadily in water treatment, new energy, humanoid robotics and AI computing server sectors, pushing mainstream rare earth prices higher with fluctuations. Lanthanum-cerium products trended steadily upward, praseodymium-neodymium products traded at high levels with volatility, and dysprosium-terbium products followed an N-shaped trajectory, with domestic demand weakening while overseas demand proved resilient. Industry sentiment showed phased divergence and volatile trading in the first half, rising steadily early in the year, consolidating with a pullback in the second quarter, and then recovering to a high range. On the shareholder front, well-known retail investor Zhang Jianping sharply reduced his stake in the company during the second quarter and exited the top ten shareholders by the end of June. As of the end of the first quarter, Zhang held 72.25 million shares, ranking as the fourth-largest shareholder. The semi-annual report showed the tenth-largest shareholder held 11.075 million shares, implying Zhang cut his position by at least 60 million shares in the second quarter. Previously disclosed semi-annual data for Cambricon also showed Zhang no longer appeared among its top ten shareholders; as of the end of 2025, he held 6.8149 million Cambricon shares, representing 1.62%.