Iron ore price back above $170 as China steel hits record

Iron ore prices rose on Tuesday, boosted by strong Chinese demand.

According to Fastmarkets MB, benchmark 62% Fe fines imported into Northern China (CFR Qingdao) were changing hands for $170.90 a tonne, up 1.43% from the previous trade.

China’s steel prices also jumped to record highs, on concerns over supply curbs in the world’s biggest producer and exporter of construction and manufacturing material.

Construction steel rebar’s May contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange ended the daytime trading session 2.1% higher at 5,180 yuan ($791) a tonne, after earlier climbing to 5,200 yuan, the highest on record or since 2011.

Production restrictions in China’s top-steelmaking city of Tangshan during the peak demand season have brought down stocks at commercial warehouses and created a “bullish atmosphere” for the market, Sinosteel Futures analysts said in a note.

Iron ore was the best performing commodity in 2020, thanks to China’s early emergence from the pandemic and Beijing’s heavy spending on economic stimulus, particularly infrastructure.

Iron ore price reached its highest level since September 2011 in mid-January,  at $174.07 per tonne. The benchmark hit an all-time high of $191.70 in February 2011.

Prices are expected to halve by the end of next year and then gradually decline to reach $72 a tonne in real terms by the end of 2026.

(With files from Reuters)