The US Great Lakes' iron ore trade suffered another bad month in June, according to a report from the Lake Carriers' Association (LCA). The LCA says iron ore shipments from US and Canadian ports totaled only 2.8 million net tons in June, which is down 56 percent compared to a year ago.
When the North American steel industry is operating at or near capacity, the Great Lakes ports of Two Harbors, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin can together ship more iron ore than was loaded at all nine Lakes and Seaway ore-loading ports in June, says the LCA.
For the year, the Lakes' iron ore trade stands at 9.4 million nt, a decrease of 62 percent from a year ago.
The Duluth-Superior Harbor in Minnesota, the Great Lakes' largest shipping port, reports that its iron ore shipments are down 61 percent this season, with the port handling 2.6 million net tons of iron ore this year through June, compared with about 6.8 million nt a year ago.