Iron ore futures end with little change

BENGALURU: Iron ore futures were little changed on Friday as rising inventories and deepening losses at steel mills in top buyer China countered some support from expectations of reduced shipments from Brazil.

The Baltic Exchange’s dry bulk freight index fell on Friday, hurt by weaker rates in its capesize segment, but headed for a weekly gain.

The main Baltic index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, fell 47 points, or 1.3percent, to 3,426 points.

Meanwhile, the panamax index rose 25 points, or 1.05percent, to 2,407 points, and was headed for a weekly rise of nearly 7percent. Average daily earnings for panamax vessels, which usually carry 60,000 to 70,000 tons of coal or grain, rose USD228 to USD21,662.