Iron ore rises as post-holiday hot metal output seen rising

SINGAPORE: Iron ore futures rallied on Wednesday on anticipation of pick up in feedstock demand as liquidity returns to the Chinese market post Lunar New Year holidays, though an increase in incoming iron ore shipments may curb price upsides.

The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) added 1.42% to 752.5 yuan ($109.51) a metric ton as of 0332 GMT.

The benchmark March iron ore on the Singapore Exchange rose 1.98% to $98.55 a ton.

The demand for iron ore is expected to pick up as Chinese blasts furnaces ramp up production after the Lunar New Year holidays.

A broad-based metals rally also helped lift sentiment.

However, traders remained cautious as steel demand for the first half of the year is projected to fall due to weakening consumption, Chinese broker Galaxy Futures said.

Iron ore prices are facing additional downward pressure from rising shipments from Australia and Brazil, with total port inventories in both countries climbing to their highest levels since the start of the year, per data from consultancy Mysteel.

Meanwhile, Fortescue reported a 23% jump in first-half profit on Wednesday, helped by record iron ore shipments and higher prices for the commodity.

The miner logged record iron ore shipments in the first-half, with a 3% drop in iron ore costs and a 6.6% rise in realised prices.

Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE gained, with coking coal and coke up 2.64% and 2.75%, respectively.

Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange firmed. Rebar gained 1.65%, hot-rolled coil added 1.13%, wire rod firmed 1.42% and stainless steel advanced 1.11%.