BEIJING: Chinese iron ore futures closed lower on Friday and logged the second straight weekly loss, as rising portside inventories hurt prices.
Stockpiles of the steelmaking ingredient at China's ports rose 2.7% to 127.8 million tonnes this week from a week earlier, data compiled by SteelHome consultancy showed, marking the highest level in eight months.
The most-traded iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange, for January delivery, closed down 3.1% at 772 yuan ($115.68) per tonne. For the week, the contract shed 1.8%.
Spot prices of iron ore with 62% iron content for delivery to China stood at $120.5 per tonne on Thursday, unchanged from the previous session, according to SteelHome.
Steel futures on China's Shanghai Futures Exchange also fell.
Construction steel rebar dropped 1.0% to 3,616 yuan a tonne. The contract inched down 0.4% this week.
Hot-rolled coils, used in the manufacturing sector, slipped 0.7% to 3,785 yuan per tonne but clocked a 2.6% weekly gain.
Vessel tracking data compiled by Refinitiv showed iron ore arrivals in China could jump to 123 million tonnes this month, supported by increasing shipments from Australia and Brazil.
Dalian coking coal ended down 1.1% to 1,347 yuan a tonne.
Coke declined 0.8% to 2,119 yuan per tonne.
Stainless steel futures, for December delivery, closed 0.6% lower at 14,535 yuan a tonne.
Japan's crude steel output dropped 19.3% in September from a year earlier, falling for a seventh straight month, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation said on Thursday.
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