Iron ore |

Iron Ore Breaks Above $70 as China’s Pivot Helps to Stoke Demand

LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iron ore has finally broken above $70 a metric ton. After a crawl higher in recent weeks, bulls drove the price back over that threshold, encouraged by surging steel prices in China, where there’s growing demand for high-quality material aided by state-driven investment and pollution curbs. SGX AsiaClear futures rallied as much as 1.5 percent to $70.60 a ton, the highest since March, and were last at $70.49. On the spot…

Iron Ore Imports Boom as China Mills Go Big Before Curbs End

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – China’s just imported a gargantuan volume of iron ore. Shipments topped 100 million metric tons in January, the second-highest volume ever and a record for the month, as mills bought more cargoes amid expectations steel output will rebound when winter curbs are lifted. Purchases swelled to 100.3 million tons, 9.3 percent higher than a year ago, and well above the 84.1 million tons seen in December, according to customs data on Thursday. The…

Iron Ore Imports Collapse as China’s Great Cleanup Kicks In

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iron ore imports by China slumped last month to the lowest in more than a year, sinking from a record of above 100 million tons, as mills prepared for unprecedented state-ordered curbs on steel output over winter. Purchases dropped to 79.49 million tons in October, according to customs data on Wednesday. That’s down from September’s 102.8 million tons, and is the lowest amount since February 2016. Over the first 10 months,…

Iron Ore Seen Back in $40s as China Challenges Loom in 2018

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) Iron ore may get a reprieve for the remainder of this year before tougher times return in 2018, according to Schroders Plc, which says the raw material may sink back below $50 a metric ton as the effect of credit-led stimulus in China wears off and demand concerns resurface in the top user. “The underlying supply and demand is pretty negative, so over a decent time period we wouldn’t be surprised to…

Iron Ore Rallies as China Imports Bust 100 Million Ton Level

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iron ore imports by China surged above 100 million metric tons to a record, smashing the previous high set in 2015, as the country’s concerted push to clean up the environment stoked demand for higher-grade material from overseas while hurting local mine supply. Prices rallied. Purchases of iron ore expanded to 102.8 million tons in September from 93 million tons a year ago, surpassing the previous record of 96.3 million tons…

Mobius Draws Contrast Between Iron Ore’s Wild Ride, Fundamentals

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iron ore consumption in China will probably be sustained as Asia’s top economy builds out infrastructure, according to Mark Mobius, who highlighted what he sees as a difference between the industry’s relatively stable supply-demand fundamentals and large swings in prices. “We’ve got to separate those two things,” the executive chairman of Templeton Emerging Markets Group said in an interview in Singapore, without giving a price forecast. “Supply-demand is one thing, price…

Iron Risks Plunge to $40s as Marex Sounds Second-Half Alarm

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LAGOS (Capital Markets in Africa) – Iron ore prices that have steadied in recent weeks after a spectacular two-month rout may be set for another steep leg down in the second half, according to Marex Spectron, which forecasts that the commodity is at risk of sinking into the $40s as mine supply expands. “What we’re seeing six months from now are weaker demand and higher supply,” Georgi Slavov, head of research at the commodity broker, said in an…