- Physical buying remains slow despite higher prices
- Portside oversupply continues to cap seaborne demand
Iron ore fines (Fe 61%) spot prices raised by $0.55/dmt d-o-d to $93.75/dmt CFR North China on 5 August 2026, giving a small rebound post cautious market sentiment.
The recovery was supported by easing geopolitical concerns following ongoing diplomatic efforts to address the US-Iran conflict, which improved overall risk sentiment.
Despite the price uptick, physical buying activity remained slow. Market participants noted that the previous session’s stronger trading was largely driven by speculative buying following lower swap prices, while the market has since reverted to its weaker underlying fundamentals. Buyers continued to adopt a cautious approach amid ample supply.
Most end-users preferred procuring iron ore at Chinese ports rather than booking seaborne cargoes, as oversupply at ports continued to offer more competitive prices. This preference for portside purchases, coupled with subdued steel demand, is likely to keep seaborne iron ore price gains limited unless physical buying activity improves.a
DCE iron ore futures: Iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) for the September 2026 held steady d-o-d at RMB 702.5/t on 6 August.
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