In December last year, China imported 70.94 million mt of iron ore, up 5.16 million mt month on month and constituting a new historical monthly record, according to the figures released by China’s General Administration of Customs on January 10. In 2012, China’s imports of iron ore totaled 740 million mt, up 8.4 percent year on year.
The significant increase in China’s ore iron imports has also contributed to the sharp rise in import prices of iron ore. From the start of last December up to the present, the average import price of iron ore has increased from less than $120/mt to nearly $160/mt.
Market players have stated that, with the sharp rise in prices of imported iron ore, imported material has lost its price advantage compared to iron ore produced in China. Some Chinese mills also plan to increase their use of domestic ore as they are on the verge of incurring losses due to the higher prices of imported ore.