After four consecutive weeks of decline, iron ore sinter feed fines and pellet prices in Brazil have increased on average by $5/mt, while the price of lumps remained stable week-on-week.
The increase reflects higher prices in the Chinese spot market, coupled with stable ocean freight rates, neutral on FOB quotations, while a reduced premium ascribed to lumps in relation to equivalent sinter feed fines resulted in the stable price of the product.
Sinter feed fines of 65 percent iron contents are now estimated to be traded for export from Brazil at $65/mt, the equivalent lumps at $75/mt and blast furnace grade pellets at $126/mt, all FOB conditions.
In the Brazilian domestic market, for equivalent ores, the prices are $59/mt for sinter feed fines, $69/mt for lumps and $120/mt for blast furnace grade pellets, ex-works, no taxes included.
According to the country’s customs data, the combined iron ore and pellets exports from Brazil have reached 30.11 million mt in August, against 34.26 million mt exported in July.