Iron Ore Market in Brief: Together with the futures market, Seaborne prices rise
Physical iron ore fines prices increased on September 30 welcoming the week-long Chinese National public holiday.
Commodity | Price | Difference / MT |
MB 62% FE IRON ORE FINES INDEX | USD 93.38 per ton CFR Qingdao | +2.53 USD |
MB 62% FE PILBARA BLEND FINES INDEX | USD 92.91 per ton CFR Qingdao | +1.67 USD |
MB 62% FE IRON ORE INDEX-LOW ALUMINA | USD 91.72 per ton CFR Qingdao | +1.26 USD |
MB 58% FE PREMIUM INDEX | USD 82.28 per ton CFR Qingdao | +1.16 USD |
MB 65% FE IRON ORE INDEX | USD 100.40 per ton CFR Qingdao | +2.30 USD |
MB 62% FE CHINA PORT PRICE INDEX | 739 Yuan per wet metric ton | +8 Yuan |
MARKET DRIVERS
China’s iron ore futures strengthened during the day while steel futures weakened. Because of the futures rise, iron ore buying interest was heard to be “not bad” during the day with some steelmakers in China doing a “last round” of restocking before the National Day holiday week,
which will start next Tuesday.
In terms of prices, iron ore fines were under some pressure amid the continuing restrictions on sintering and pelletizing in some northern Chinese cities, while lumps and pellets, which are direct-charge materials, were supported by more demand, according to sources.
A seaborne cargo of Pilbara Blend lump traded at a higher lump premium during the day. Iron ore fines indices were mixed for the day, while the lump premium index rose.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Some participants believe that the [steel] production restrictions are likely to be less strict for the upcoming winter [season], while there are also talks of mills re-stocking for the week-long holiday [in China], in turn this has prompted the [iron ore] futures to be bullish,” a Singapore-based analyst said.
PORT PRICES
Pilbara Blend fines traded at 738-747 yuan per MT in Shandong province on Monday, according to sources. The latest range was equivalent to USD96-97.20 per MT CFR China in the seaborne market.
In South of Brazil, the pig iron ore exporters resumed sales activity after a month of silence despite the price fall due to falling scrap prices and its consequent low demand.
The weekly price assessment for pig iron, FOB export Vitorio/Rio, Brazil was USD 275-280 per MT on Friday down from USD285-300 per MT last week.
During the week suppliers sold several pig iron to China at around USD275-280 per MT FOB with a total volume of around 170,000 MT, meaning that suppliers have sold out all their material for October shipment and only limited volumes remained available for November shipment.
No discussions were heard in the United States market, normally the principal outlet for Brazil-origin pig iron. US buyers were heard to be interested in high-phosphorus pig iron at prices around $280 per tonne cfr, equivalent to $255-260 per tonne fob, from the south of Brazil.
But exporters were not heard to be ready to sell at this price, considering the higher deal prices to China.
Workable prices in other markets for buyers sere lower due to weakness in scrap market.
Report By: Parya AhmadPour
