Iron ore imports in China decreased by 2.38 percent month on month to 90.652 million mt in November this year, as major miners shipped less. However, the import volume was up 5.1 percent year on year.
In the January-November period this year, China’s imports of iron ore and iron ore concentrate amounted to 970.693 million mt, down 0.7 percent year on year, though the decline rate slowed from the 1.6 percent fall in the January-October period.
In November, import iron ore prices for China declined first but moved up later in the month, decreasing from $85/mt CFR to $78.21 CFR but then rebounding to $87.5/mt CFR due to good demand amid high crude steel output in the given month. As of November 30, imported iron ore inventory at Chinese ports totaled 123 million mt, decreasing by 3.53 percent month on month.
Since demand will likely slacken in the coming cold winter offseason, iron ore prices are not expected to move up further but are foreseen to fluctuate within a limited range amid the sufficient supply in the iron ore market.