Iron ore dips as data shows weaker global crude steel output

SINGAPORE: Iron ore futures prices traded lower on Wednesday, weighed by lower crude steel production globally.

The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) traded 0.32% lower at 775 yuan ($110.29) a metric ton, as of 0241 GMT.

The benchmark January iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 0.55% lower at $103.8 a ton.

Global crude steel production in November fell 4.6% year-on-year to 140.1 million tons, while crude steel output from top producer and consumer China lost 10.9% to 69.9 million tons, data from the World Steel Association showed on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, major producer Japan’s crude steel output is expected to dip 1.7% in the first three months of 2026 due to weak demand from the construction and manufacturing sectors.

This would see the country’s annual output for the fiscal year ending March 31 decrease 3.2% from a year earlier, the lowest output since fiscal 1968.

Chinese blast furnace steelmakers slowed their purchases of feed materials last week, taking only the volume needed to meet their immediate production needs to avoid losses, said consultancy Mysteel in a note.

Still, China pledged on Tuesday to step up urban renewal and efforts to stabilise its property market in 2026 at the start of its latest five-year plan (2026-2030), aiming to improve the supply of affordable housing.

China’s property sector has remained under pressure since mid-2021, with weak home sales and falling prices weighing on consumer confidence despite repeated government attempts to shore up the sector.

Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE were mixed, with coking coal up 0.22% and coke down 0.14%.

Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mostly up.

Hot-rolled coil gained 0.15%, wire rod edged up 0.03% and stainless steel strengthened 1.43%, while rebar eased 0.06%.