The price of Brazilian iron ore with a 65 percent iron content remains stable this week at $128/metric ton (mt), CFR China, market insiders told SteelOrbis. Steady weekly pricing is the result of large iron ore stockpiles at Chinese ports, offset by blast furnaces running at high utilization rates near full capacity, they said.
Blast furnace grade pellets are exported at $146/mt, also unchanged, showing a stable premium over same-grade sinter feed fines.
The premium for Brazilian high-grade ore containing 65 percent iron, relative to Australian ore with 62 percent iron, declined slightly to 8.3 percent from previously 8.4 percent, when considering the iron units, still reflecting high demand for high grade ores, insiders said.
In the Brazilian domestic market, reference prices are now $90/mt for the ore and $108/mt for pellets, against $92/mt and $109/mt previously, on an ex-works basis, no taxes included.
Such declines reflect higher Brazil China freight rates, as the domestic price is based on FOB conditions, having CFR China as the benchmark.
According to ship brokers Banchero Costa, the Tubarão-Qingdao route, the reference for Brazil-China iron ore shipments, stands today at $35.05/mt, the highest in recent years, and 80.9 percent above the same period in 2025.
