Metal & Oil & Gas News –
China’s iron ore imports jumped nearly 11% in July from the previous month as buyers took advantage of lower prices for the steelmaking raw material and stocked up, despite weak domestic steel demand.
July’s total shipments of 82.52 million tonnes represented the third highest on record, with steel mills in China continuing to produce at high rates. Margins for steel mills have also improved as a result of lower iron ore and other input prices.
Mr Graeme Train, analyst with Macquarie in Shanghai said that “The import numbers are generally pretty volatile and you get up months and down months the June number looked a little low so July represents a higher number, but if you look at the averages over the quarter, it is pretty much in line.”
Australia’s share of Chinese iron ore imports was 61% of the total in June and 56% in the first half of the year, against about 50.8% for the whole of 2013.
Source – Reuters
