Dalian iron ore near one-year low, posts steepest weekly fall in nearly six months
Dalian iron ore futures hovered near a one-year low on Friday, logging their biggest weekly loss in almost six months, as bleak Chinese economic data dimmed demand prospects in the top consumer’s steel market.
The most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 0.07% lower at 684 yuan ($96.55) a metric ton.
The contract hit an intraday low of 668.0 yuan, its weakest since Aug. 21, 2023. It was down 9.85% this week, posting its steepest week-on-week fall since March 15.
Benchmark October iron ore SZZFV4 on the Singapore Exchange, however, was 1.08% higher at $92.0 a ton, as of 0730 GMT.
Iron ore is among the commodities most vulnerable to China slowdown risks as the property market constitutes the bulk of steel demand, which may continue deteriorating, ING analysts said in a note.
The purchasing managers’ index for China’s steel industry declined for the third consecutive month in August, the official index compiler CFLP Steel Logistics Professional Committee (CSLPC) said.
In August, domestic steel demand weakened further, while steel production decreased, according to CSLPC.
Iron ore’s slump comes as the China Iron & Steel Association advised mills against the impulse to restart production and boost output too quickly, despite estimating a certain degree of recovery in steel demand through September and October, ANZ analysts said.
“We expect iron ore prices to fall further this year amid subdued demand and sufficient supply,” the ING analysts added.
Total iron ore inventories across 45 major Chinese ports edged 0.2% higher to 154.1 million tons by Sept. 5, hitting a new high since April 2022, Chinese consultancy Mysteel said.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE lost ground, with coking coal DJMcv1 and coke DCJcv1 down 1.76% and 1.8%, respectively.
Most steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were weaker. Hot-rolled coil SHHCcv1 shed almost 2.0%, rebar SRBcv1 lost about 1.8%, stainless steel SHSScv1 declined 0.26%, while wire rod SWRcv1 added 0.45%.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Gabrielle Ng; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala and Shounak Dasgupta)