Australia’s Port Hedland Iron Ore Exports Down by 8% in Jan’17

Western Australia’s Port Hedland the world’s largest bulk export terminal exported around 40.3 MnT iron ore in Jan’17.

The volume of exports from Port Hedland down by 8% M-o-M as compared to Dec’16 as it was 43.94 MnT. However, on Y-o-Y basis, exports rose by 19% as it was 33.7 MnT in the same consecutive month last year.

In 2016, iron ore exports from Port Hedland were recorded at 479 MnT against 446 MnT in 2015.

In Jan’17, Port Hedland shipped around 85% share of iron ore to China. China, being the largest export destination, imported 34.49 MnT iron ore in Jan’17 against 37.4 MnT in Dec’16. Exports to China fell by 8% M-o-M and moved up 30% Y-o-Y.

However, on Y-o-Y basis, exports to South Korea grew by 33.7% Y-o-Y to 3.16 MnT, while exports to Japan dropped by 53.2% to 0.87 MnT. Taiwan exports remained at 0.78 MnT, Singapore at 0.34 MnT.

Port Hedland has delivered a total throughput of around 446 MnT iron ore in 2015 and 414 MnT in 2014. BHP Billiton and FMG (Fortescue Metals Group) exports iron ore mainly from Australia’s Port Hedland, while Rio Tinto ships from Port Dampier.