Prices of ex-Australia iron ore of 62 percent Fe content for delivery to China’s Qingdao port, which moved in the range of $55.5-57.5/mt CFR last week, have trended sideways since last Friday, starting the current week at $55.5-56/mt CFR China. As of September 5, inventory of iron ore at 33 major Chinese ports amounted to 99.29 million mt, down 1.87 million mt or 1.87 percent compared to the inventory level recorded on August 29, as announced by China's Xinhua News Agency.
Iron ore prices in China, which had started the month of September on a slight upward trend and had switched to a downtrend later on, has continued this downtrend until the last days of the last week. During the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday in China on September 15-17, iron ore prices moved sideways and have started this week at the same price levels. Meanwhile, iron ore bookings in China are expected to increase due to the forthcoming national holidays in the country in the coming period. Accordingly, inventory of iron ore at 33 major Chinese ports is expected to decrease further in late September and especially in October.
Meanwhile, in August, Moody’s, Citi Group, Morgan Stanley and S&P had shared their outlook regarding the iron ore market and price trend, stating that prices will range at $40-60/mt CFR China. Also, according to a poll of analysts which was published by Reuters last week, average forecast for iron ore is expected to hit $46.5/mt in 2017 and $48/mt in 2018, down from an expected $50.9/mt for 2016.