Slightly increased iron ore prices in the Chinese spot market, coupled with increased ocean freight rates that negatively affected FOB quotations, resulted in Brazilian iron ore prices increasing on average by $1/mt on a weekly basis.
Sinter feed fines of 65 percent iron contents are now traded for export from Brazil at $75/mt, the equivalent lumps at $87/mt and blast furnace grade pellets at $133/mt, FOB conditions.
In the Brazilian domestic market, the prices are now $69/mt for sinter feed fines, $81/mt for lumps and $127/mt for blast furnace grade pellets, ex-works, no taxes included.
Preliminary indications by Brazilian customs authorities point to a two-digit percentage decrease in February from the 30.4 million mt of combined iron ore and pellets exported in January.