Wednesday, October 27,
Iron ore prices remains unchanged as steelmakers warned soft demand will continue through the end of the year, triggering concerns of a dent in appetite for the steelmaking ingredient.
ArcelorMittal, the world’s largest steelmaker, and two major U.S. producers said on Tuesday that the industry faces a fallow period at least through the end of the year with weak shipments and a margin squeeze.
“Deals are still very rare,” said an iron ore trader in Singapore. “The offers for 63.5 percent are still around $ 157- 158/MT”.
The Steel Index 62 percent iron ore benchmark stood at $149.90 a tonne, C&F China, on Tuesday, versus $149.40 on Monday.
Interest from top buyer China weakened after iron ore prices surged to near five-month highs earlier this month when the mills returned to the market after a week-long holiday.
A cloudy outlook for steel demand and ongoing production cuts elsewhere in China as part of the country’s energy-saving campaign also thinned appetite for iron ore.
Little activity in the physical market similarly limited action in forward swaps, with the November contract SGXIOc2 up 27 cents to $144.87 a tonne, and the December contract SGXIOc3 off 20 cents to $143.00 a tonne.
Source: Reuters
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