In the first quarter of 2010, the Jiangsu-based eastern Chinese port of Zhangjiagang registered imports of 1.74 million mt of iron ore fines amounting to a value of $190 million, respectively increasing by 175 percent and 259 percent year on year.
The significant increase in imports of iron ore fines can be attributed to two factors. Firstly, as the iron ore talks for 2010 have not yet reached a conclusion, the prices of spot iron ore have been rocketing, and so steel producers have been stocking up on imports of iron ore fines. Furthermore, some traders are bullish on the future prospects of the market, and have also been stocking up and have halted their sales in expectation of further increases.