With higher quotations in the Chinese spot market, coupled with stable premium for lumps and pellets and also stable ocean freight rates, iron ore prices in Brazil have increased in the last week, following another increase the previous week, bringing iron ore offers to levels last seen in July 2019.
Sinter feed fines of 65 percent iron contents are now traded for export from Brazil at $122/mt, the equivalent lumps at $130/mt and the equivalent blast furnace grade pellets at $136/mt, all CFR China conditions, dry basis, against $118/mt, $125/mt and $132/mt, respectively, last week.
Such prices in the Brazilian domestic market are now respectively $93/mt, $100/mt and 107/mt, dry basis, ex-works conditions, no taxes included, against $89/mt, $96/mt and $103/mt last week.
Preliminary indications from customs are pointing to a combined export volume of iron ore and pellets in July in line with the 30.05 million mt exported from Brazil in June.