India: Iron ore import shipments fall 23%, m-o-m, in Jan on rising global prices

India registered a significant 23% fall in iron ore import shipments in Jan’22. The volumes stood at 0.61 million tonnes (mnt) in Jan’22 as against 0.79 mnt in Dec’21, according to the vessel line-up data maintained with SteelMint.

South Africa leading exporter

South Africa continued to be the largest exporter of iron ore to India at 0.21 mnt in Jan’22. However, import volumes witnessed a sharp decrease of 53% m-o-m as against 0.45 mnt in Dec’21.

Australia and Brazil, both occupied the second position among the top exporters’ list with 0.16 mnt each. Import volumes from Australia fell significantly by 36%, m-o-m, in Jan’22.

Shipper-wise importers in Jan’22

JSW Steel was the largest iron ore importer in Jan’22 at 0.33 mnt, down when compared to 0.36 mn t in Dec’21. Tata International stood as the second-largest importer at 0.15 mnt followed by AM/NS India with 0.08 mnt.

Why have iron ore imports fallen in Jan’22?

With the rise in global and Indian iron ore import prices, import bookings for the raw material have slowed down.

Global iron ore prices extended gains on strong demand for finished steel. The spot price of benchmark iron ore Fe 62% fines rose to $117/t in end-Dec’21 from $90/t in mid-Nov’21. Prices further rose sharply to $148/t in end-Jan’22.

Following a significant rise in global iron ore prices, Indian iron ore import prices witnessed an upward trend. Import prices for South African lumps stood at $138/t CFR Kandla in end-Dec’21, up when compared to $115/t in end-Nov’21. Prices rose to $153/t in end-Jan’22.

Also, the import shipments that arrived in Jan’22 were booked nearly 1-1.5 months back when global prices were relatively lower.  With sharp rebound in global iron ore prices, imported ore inquiries have slowed down further.