October 21,
(SteelMint Exclusive)
LOW DEMAND AND SELECTIVE BUYING FROM CHINESE BUYERS
Spot prices of iron ore hovering around $157-158/MT for 63.5 Fe cargo CFR China. Recent hike in interest rates by Chinese govt has led steel prices to fall down. Chinese Re-Bar futures corrected about 2% on Wednesday. Steel mills are cautious at these levels.
Falling steel prices not supporting Iron ore prices at these levels.” We have fewer queries from Chinese buyers as they are cautious and selective buying at these prices.” Said an exporter based in India.
“Iron ore prices likely to fall further if steel demand remains weak and sluggish.” Said an industry expert based in Singapore.
IRON ORE EXPORTS DOWN 47% at 3 Mn TONNE IN SEPTEMBER
Witnessing the steepest fall this fiscal, iron ore exports in September went down by 47.46 per cent to 3.02 million tonnes due to the ban imposed by mineral-rich Karnataka on iron ore shipments and extended monsoon in the country.
“The decline, biggest this fiscal, is mainly due to the Karnataka ban and the prolonged monsoon season,” FIMI Secretary General R K Sharma said.
According to the data compiled by industry body FIMI, the country shipped 5.7 million tonnes of iron ore in the same period last year.
India, the world’s third largest iron ore exporter, had produced 218 million tonnes of iron ore in the last fiscal and exported almost half of it.
Of the total exports, more than 80 per cent went to China, the world’s largest steel producer. Iron ore is a vital steel making raw material.
Karnataka had during the last quarter announced banning exports of iron ore from some of its ports in an attempt to curb illegal mining of the mineral in the state.
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