During the week ending January 16, transaction activity in the Chinese iron ore market has picked up as the big three overseas mining giants, Vale, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto, opened tenders for iron ore. At the same time, the transaction prices for imported iron ore have trended down slightly. Meanwhile, prices of domestic production iron ore in the Chinese market have also indicated downward movement, with minor downticks witnessed in domestic production ore prices in Tangshan and Liaoning.
At present, Indian fine ores of 63.5 percent grade are offered at $148.7/mt at Qingdao port. Meanwhile, quotations of 66 percent iron ore concentrate in Tangshan stand at $137.3/mt, and prices of the same material are at $114.4/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.
Transaction prices in the iron ore spot market in China have declined in line with reduced expectations for the market in the coming period. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto's PB fines and Yandi fines have been transacted at $130.33/mt and $118.3/mt, also indicating slight declines, for shipments in late January and early February. Chinese steel mills stated that their purchasing activities will slacken in the remaining two weeks of trading ahead of the Spring Festival holiday (starts end of January) following the completion of current stock replenishments. Overall, it is thought that the Chinese iron ore market may indicate a slight downtrend in the coming week.