Iron ore extends gains on lower shipments, robust China steel exports

BEIJING: Iron ore futures rose for a fourth straight session on Tuesday to hover near their highest levels in more than a week, helped by lower shipments from key producers and top consumer China’s robust steel exports.

The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) was 1.57% higher at 778 yuan ($106.14) a metric ton, as of 0214 GMT, hitting the highest level since Jan. 3. The benchmark February iron ore on the Singapore Exchange traded 1.43% higher at $100.15 a ton, as of 0204 GMT. It hit the highest level since Jan. 3 at $100.35 earlier in the day.

Iron ore shipments from Australia and Brazil, the world’s top two producers, slipped by 9% week-on-week to 23.88 million tons in the week of Jan. 6-12, data from consultancy Mysteel showed. Also helping the key steelmaking ingredient were brightened demand prospects as steel exports remained robust.

China’s steel exports last month climbed 25.9% year-on-year to bring the 2024 total to a nine-year high of 110.72 million tons, a rise of 22.7% from 2023, customs data showed on Monday.

China’s steel exports are likely to post annual growth in January and February as well amid competitive prices, depreciating yuan, and rising export orders among steelmakers, Wang Guoqing, an analyst at consultancy Lange Steel, said in a note on Monday. Wang forecast steel exports in 2025 to stay at between 80 million and 100 million tons amid growing trade frictions.

Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE advanced, with coking coal and coke up 1.49% and 0.79%, respectively. Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed. Rebar added 0.9%, hot-rolled coil rose 1%, while wire rod edged down 0.17% and stainless steel ticked 0.23% lower.