With higher prices in the Chinese spot market and stable ocean freight charges, iron ore prices in Brazil, for export and domestic spot sales, have increased by $1/mt to $3/mt over the week.
For export, sinter feed fines of 65 percent iron contents are now traded at $41/mt, lumps at $45/mt and blast furnace grade pellets at $72/mt, FOB conditions.
In the domestic market, such prices are now respectively $35/mt, $40/mt and $68/mt, ex-works, no taxes included.
Local analysts believe that Vale’s announcement of a two-year extension in the ramp-up process of its S11D project is one of the factors sustaining iron ore price levels in global terms.
The project, expected to produce 90 million mt of high grade ore at low production costs, would impact the already high excess iron ore production capacity, chiefly when coupled to new capacity commencing in Australia.