Rhodium, a lesser known precious metal that’s as rare or rarer than gold, has been on a roller coaster ride over the past few months in terms of prices. Most recently, it’s on the upside of its twisting and turning path.

During the second full week of July, rhodium prices jumped 29 percent, reaching a shares price that beat out every other stock value on the MSCI World Index, according to Bloomberg.

Similar to platinum group metals, rhodium has many industrial uses, predominantly in the automotive manufacturing sphere, as it’s a primary component of catalytic converters that help scrub the earth’s atmosphere of noxious fumes emitted by motor vehicle engines.

Jonathan Butler, precious metals strategist at Mitsubishi Corporation, told Bloomberg that prior to the price spike, rhodium values were quite low, causing increased buying. Now, more people and companies are buying for investment purposes.

«Everyone wants a slice of the pie when something as volatile as rhodium breaks higher,» Butler relayed to the business news outlet. «We’ve seen demand rush back over the past few days with industrial buyers trying to lock in prices below $1,000 an ounce.»

John Meyer, mining analyst for SP Angel Corporate Finance, LLP, added that because rhodium is a comparatively small market to other metals like gold and silver, it’s more reactive to buyer fluctuations and the change in values that result.

Less than a month ago, rhodium prices fell to $955 per ounce, according to data from Johnson Matthey Plc. due to increased production from South African miners who ended their work stoppage after a labor dispute was resolved, Bloomberg reported in June.

South Africa is the worldwide hub for rhodium production, where nearly 60 percent of the world’s supply originates. Russia is the world’s second-largest producer.