As of August 20, inventory of iron ore at 33 major Chinese ports amounted to 129.01 million mt, down 0.96 percent compared to the inventory levels recorded on August 13, as announced by China's Xinhua News Agency.
As of the same date, the Xinhua-China Iron Ore Price Index for imported iron ore with 62 percent iron content was at 68 points, remaining stable compared to August 13. Meanwhile, the Xinhua-China Iron Ore Price Index for imported iron ore with 58 percent iron content was at 56 points on the date in question, also remaining unchanged over the same period.
During the given week, finished steel prices have moved up due to production limits for environmental protection aim. Meanwhile, high temperature and rainy weather have exerted a negative impact on steelmakers’ production, which also bolstered finished steel prices. However, the Sino-US trade dispute will be a big uncertainty for finished steel market.
In the given period, the import iron ore prices moved sideways. Following previous rises, the transaction activities in import iron ore market have stagnated. Meanwhile, iron ore futures prices at Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) have moved down, exerting a negative impact on import iron ore market. It is expected that import iron ore prices will likely move sideways in the coming week.