Iron ore prices in China have seen declines over the past week due to weak sentiments, slow demand and the uncertain outlook, but they have inched up today, March 6, following some positive news from the Two Sessions meetings and the small increase in futures prices.
Prices for ex-Australia iron ore fines with 62 percent Fe content are at $100.6/mt, up $0.7 percent from yesterday, while down $4.4/mt week on week. Also, ex-Brazil fines with 65 percent Fe are priced at $114.5/mt CFR, increasing by $0.75/mt from yesterday and down by $3.9/mt over the past week.
20 deals for a total of 210,700 mt iron ore have been done at the Corex platform on March 6, including 20,000 mt of 61.5 percent Fe PB fines transacted at RMB 781/mt ($109/mt), for delivery at Jingtang port, and 10,000 mt of 58.14 percent Fe MB fines sold at RMB 650/mt ($90.7/mt), for delivery at Jingtang port. The trading overall has been slower than earlier this week when prices were falling constantly.
During the given week, import iron ore prices have edged down amid the prevailing cautious sentiments in the ferrous metals market. Though market players look forward to the stimulus policies following the Two Sessions, they are quite prudent due to worries about several countries imposing AD tariffs on Chinese steel products. Resumption of production in the steel market has not been as good as market players had expected, cooling their optimistic sentiments to a certain degree. The shipments of iron ore in the global market are expected to increase slightly, which will exert a negative impact on prices. However, molten iron output is anticipated to increase from mid-March, when production restrictions in Tangshan finish, which will provide support for iron ore prices. It is expected that import iron ore prices in the Chinese domestic market will fluctuate within a limited range in the coming week.
Iron ore futures prices at Dalian Commodity Exchange have decreased by 0.45 percent today to RMB 773/mt ($108/mt) compared to the previous trading day, March 5, while decreasing by RMB 32/mt ($4.5/mt) compared to February 27.
As of March 6, rebar futures at Shanghai Futures Exchange are standing at RMB 3,282/mt ($458/mt), decreasing by RMB 47/mt ($6.6/mt) or 1.4 percent since February 27, while up 0.43 percent compared to the previous trading day, March 5.
Imported iron ore prices in China (week-on-week basis)
| Product name | Iron Content |
Truck loaded price (RMB/mt) |
Change (RMB/mt) |
Price ($/mt) |
Change ($/mt) |
| Newman iron ore lump | 63/63.5 | 897 | -28 | 125.1 | -3.8 |
| Yandi fines | 58/59 | 749 | -28 | 104.5 | -3.8 |
| PB Fines | 62 | 778 | -28 | 108.5 | -3.8 |
| PB iron ore lump | 62/63 | 907 | -31 | 126.5 | -4.2 |
| Brazil fines | 63 | 789 | -28 | 110.1 | -3.8 |
Price includes VAT
Nationwide iron ore concentrate prices (66 percent Fe)
| Place of origin | Market price （RMB/mt, Incl. VAT) | Change (RMB/mt) |
Price（$/mt) | Change ($/mt) |
| Tangshan | 862 | 0 | 120 | 0 |
| Beipiao | 825 | -6 | 115 | -1 |
Price includes VAT.
$1 = RMB 7.1692