During the week ending June 19, prices of imported iron ore in China have witnessed an overall downtrend, while at the same time traders' offers of domestic production iron ore in Tangshan and Liaoning have also seen downward movement. Transaction activity for both imported and domestic iron ore have been at low levels.
At present, Indian fine ores of 63.5 percent grade are offered at $111.1/mt at Qingdao port. Meanwhile, quotations of 66 percent iron ore concentrate in Tangshan stand at $107.8/mt and prices of the same material are at $91.5/mt in Beipiao, both excluding VAT. Prices of domestic production and imported iron ore in China can be viewed in the SteelOrbis price reports section.
During the given week, Chinese steelmakers have been reluctant to purchase imported iron ore, negatively impacting prices of imported material, while their purchases of domestic ore have also been on the slow side. Currently, iron ore futures prices are at around $90/mt. Meanwhile, the decreases seen in prices of semi-finished steel products and finished steel products have also put downward pressure on iron ore prices. Some market insiders have mentioned that finished steel prices could see a recovery from their current low levels. However, it is expected that iron ore prices in the Chinese market will remain on a soft trend due to the lack of any positive news which would provide support for the steel market and the raw materials market.