BEIJING: Iron ore futures prices dangled in a tight range on Tuesday, as investors and traders awaited a raft of additional economic data from top consumer China for clarity of demand outlook and stimulus prospects.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) closed daytime trade 0.99% higher at 713 yuan ($97.52) a metric ton.
The benchmark May iron ore on the Singapore Exchange pared earlier loss to trade 0.48% higher at $98.6 a ton, as of 0700 GMT. China is scheduled to release a batch of economic indicators and industrial metals output data on Wednesday.
Mixed market signals have blurred demand outlook for the key steelmaking ingredient, leaving prices swinging back and forth in a narrow range.
Relatively high hot metal output underpinned near-term ore demand, arresting a potential price slump amid the escalating trade tensions between the world’s two largest economies.
But it’s hard to see hot metal output surpass 2.45 million tons without substantial good news for the steel sector, analysts at Maike Futures said in a note.
Moreover, while China’s steel exports in March beat expectations to exceed 10 million tons, outbound shipments in the second half of the year will likely feel the pain from the intensifying trade frictions fueled by the heightened tariffs by US President Donald Trump, said analysts.
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