China's domestic manganese ore market has moved sideways during the past week influenced by the National Day holiday (Oct 1-7). Mainstream quotations of Australian lump ore with 46 percent Mn content currently stand at $6.88-7.13/dmtu at China's Tianjin port, while offers of lump ore of 48 percent Mn content are at $7.29/dmtu. Also at Tianjin port, quotations for 44 percent grade Mn ore from Gabon are standing at $6.32/dmtu, while offers of South African lump ore of 38 percent Mn content are at $5.67/dmtu.
Due to the holiday, manganese ore supply volumes reaching Chinese ports as well as the domestic demand volume have both been at low levels in the past week, and this has contributed to the stability of domestic manganese ore prices in the week in question. Meanwhile, downstream manganese alloy quotations for October have moved up by RMB 100/mt and it is believed that some slight upward movement may continue to be seen in manganese alloy prices in the coming period. Overall, considering the slight upticks in domestic manganese alloy prices and the minor downward movement in foreign manganese ore quotations, it is thought that Chinese domestic manganese ore prices will maintain their stable trend for another while.