Iron ore prices have moved up further on Friday even despite the slowdown in trading activity in the market. Higher futures prices and positive sentiments amid optimism in the steel market have supported the uptrend in the iron ore segment. Iron ore fines prices with 62 percent Fe content have increased by $1.2/mt today and by $4.1/mt over the week to $88/mt CFR, the highest level since October 15, according to SteelOrbis’ data. Brazilian fines with 65 percent Fe content are at $100/mt CFR, up $1/mt compared to Thursday.
There have been no reports of deals at trading platforms and some trading has been seen mostly at Chinese ports.
Iron ore futures at Dalian Commodity Exchange have gained RMB 14/mt ($2/mt) today to RMB 650.5/mt ($93/mt), following a few days of limited fluctuations. Rebar futures at Shanghai Future Exchange have resumed their upward trend today, adding RMB 12/mt ($1.7/mt) to RMB 3,655/mt ($520/mt).
The market development in the near future will depend mostly on the demand side, suppliers said, as “while we can see such strong demand [for long steel products], iron ore will stay strong,” a Chinese trader said.
The bushfire season is starting in the Pilbara region in Western Australia. The local Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) said there was an increased fire risk because of a lack of rainfall. At the moment, all miners are taking measures to prevent fires and disruptions of their operations.