During last week (March 4-8), China's iron ore spot trading platform run by the China Beijing International Mining Exchange (CMBX) recorded 36 offers of a total of 2.745 million mt of iron ore, with the conclusion of eight deals totaling 765,000 mt, constituting the best transaction results since the beginning of 2013, according to the CBMX data.
Since the opening of the transaction platform on May 8, 2012, 1,353 offers of a total of 114 million mt of iron ore have been made, with 89 deals concluded for a total of 9.8565 million mt worth RMB 1.129 billion ($180 million).
According to the CBMX, the iron ore market was sluggish at the beginning of last week due to tight market availability, but the conclusion of two deals subsequently stabilized the market and boosted traders' confidence. While high finished steel inventory may have a negative impact on demand for iron ore, it is thought that prices of iron ore will likely remain at high levels.