Brazilian court clears BHP, Vale and Samarco of charges in 2015 dam disaster
A court in Belo Horizonte ruled that state prosecutors failed to prove that "individual actions" directly contributed to the collapse of the dam.
Iron ore futures fell on Monday to their lowest in more than a year, as investors weighed prospects of soft China demand amid an uneven economic recovery and stronger supply against fresh monetary easing measures by the world’s top consumer.
The most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 4.5% lower at 658.5 yuan a metric ton, marking its weakest level since Aug. 17, 2023.
The benchmark October iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 2.31% lower at $81.55 a ton, as of 0701 GMT.
“The broader risk-off tone is being underpinned by a weak outlook for Chinese demand, as evidenced by weakness in new housing construction and a lack of offset from the infrastructure sector,” Westpac analysts said in a note.
Raw iron ore output in the January-August period climbed 4.1% year-on-year, Chinese financial information site Hexun Futures reported, citing National Bureau of Statistics data.
Meanwhile, stainless steel exports hit a record high in August, rising 33.4% year-on-year, Chinese consultancy Mysteel said.
The surge in exports, also up 18.9% from July, comes as manufacturers increasingly turn to the global market amid sluggish domestic demand this year, Mysteel said.
China’s central bank supplied 14-day cash to its banking system and at a lower interest rate, signalling its intent for further monetary stimulus, though analysts said the funding operation in itself wasn’t a major policy easing.
The world’s second-largest economy is struggling to lift growth despite a series of policies aimed at spurring domestic spending. Speculation that Beijing will hasten easing grew last week after a super-sized rate cut by the US Federal Reserve.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE weakened, with coking coal and coke down 4.02% and 4.35%, respectively.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell. Rebar shed 3.35%, hot-rolled coil weakened nearly 2.5%, wire rod declined 1.65% and stainless steel lost 2.24%.
($1 = 7.0495 Chinese yuan)
(By Gabrielle Ng; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
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