Iron ore dips on higher inventories

SINGAPORE: Iron ore futures prices edged lower on Friday, weighed down by a rise in Chinese port inventories and softer global steel production, although positive macroeconomic sentiment limited further losses.

The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) traded 1.85% lower at 796.5 yuan ($111.20) a metric ton, as of 0339 GMT.

The benchmark August iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 1.81% lower at $103.15 a ton.

Global steel production in June fell 5.8% year-on-year, while crude steel output from top producer and consumer China fell 9.2% during the same period, data from the World Steel Association showed.