The price of the 65 percent iron sinter feed fines of Brazil has fluctuated from $250/mt, one week ago, to $238/mt yesterday and to $250/mt again today, CFR China conditions. The fluctuation maintains prices among the highest in historical terms.
The $12/mt gain from yesterday reflects the prospective return to operation of idled blast furnaces due to slacking restriction of emissions in Tangshan, coupled with positive fundamentals for iron ore prices, as supply remains tight, limiting the downside to prices, while demand remains high in most world regions.
The premium of the Brazilian high-grade ore over the Australian 62 percent iron contents has reached 11 percent, when considering the iron units of these ores. It is among the highest figures of the month, reflecting the demand for products that are processed with lower emissions in blast furnaces.
The same happened with blast furnace grade pellets, also a product associated to low emissions in blast furnaces, with prices currently estimated at $314/mt, CFR China conditions.
In the Brazilian domestic market, the prices are estimated at $214/mt for the high-grade ore and $279/mt for pellets, ex-works, no taxes included.