China has expanded its restrictions on iron ore shipments from Australian miner BHP, intensifying a long-running contract dispute between the miner and Chinese state-owned iron ore trading arm China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG), according to a report by Reuters.
In November last year, CMRG told Chinese steel mills and traders to stop purchasing cargoes of a second iron ore product from BHP Group, specifically low-grade “Jinbao fines”, following an earlier ban from September 2025 that targeted BHP’s “Jimblebar blend fines”, as SteelOrbis previously reported.
This time, CMRG has instructed domestic steel mills and traders to stop accepting deliveries of Newman fines, a widely traded BHP iron ore product stored at Chinese ports, starting next week. Existing cargoes may still be collected within a limited transition period of about five working days.
The measures could affect a significant share of BHP’s shipments to China if expanded further, SteelOrbis understands.
The tightening restrictions have triggered a rush among traders to sell BHP cargoes already stored at Chinese ports amid fears that additional products could soon be banned.
Contract negotiations remain unresolved
The restrictions come as negotiations continue over long-term supply terms between BHP and CMRG, which oversees a large share of China’s iron ore imports. The outcome of the talks will determine whether the restrictions remain temporary or escalate further, potentially affecting global iron ore trade flows and pricing dynamics.