# Zinc

The metal that stops steel rusting: most zinc ends up as a thin galvanised coat on cars, roofs and bridges.

Source page: https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/

Base metals · No. 8

- US critical 2025
- HHI 1,429 · unconcentrated
 Base metals · Foundation · Matter

Scratch a galvanised steel roof and the zinc keeps protecting it, sacrificing itself so the iron does not rust.

Chart: Illustration: Zinc

##### Where it comes from

Chart: Map of where it comes from

Zinc is mined as sphalerite, a zinc sulfide that usually comes with lead and silver in the same mine. The ore is floated, roasted, leached and electroplated into pure metal.

##### Three things to know

1. In 1991-92 Marc Rich + Co and two producers held over 90% of LME zinc stocks in an attempted corner.
2. Zinc ore also yields indium, whose output rose 1675% between 1975 and 2012 as recovery improved.
3. Reserves look short at 18 years, but identified resources of about 1.9 billion tonnes are far larger.

##### The journey

1. 1 **Sphalerite ore**Zinc sulfide, often with lead, silver
2. 2 **Concentrate**Ore crushed and floated
3. 3 **Roasting**Burned to zinc oxide calcine
4. 4 **Electrowinning**Leached and plated as high-grade zinc
5. 5 **Products**Galvanised sheet, die castings, brass
 Covered in [What makes something a commodityCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/what-is-a-commodity/)[From ground to marketCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/from-ground-to-market/)[Supply, demand and the cost curveCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/supply-demand-costs/)[Reserves, stocks and depletionCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/reserves-stocks-depletion/)[Prices and cyclesCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/prices-and-cycles/)[How commodities tradeCommodities](https://www.materialinsights.org/learn/commodities/how-commodities-trade/)and 9 more

##### Go deeper pick a tab to open it in full

## Other sections

- [Overview](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/overview/index.md)
- [Correlation](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/correlation/index.md)
- [Extraction](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/extraction/index.md)
- [Production](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/production/index.md)
- [Stocks](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/stocks/index.md)
- [Cycles](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/cycles/index.md)
- [Trading](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/trading/index.md)
- [Movement](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/movement/index.md)
- [Criticality](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/criticality/index.md)
- [Characteristics](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/characteristics/index.md)
- [Emissions](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/emissions/index.md)
- [Relationships](https://www.materialinsights.org/commodities/zinc/links/index.md)