The iron ore inventories across the 10 major ports in China dropped 0.4% from a week ago to 88.78 million mt this week. According to SMM data, 182 ships arrived at domestic ports from April 15 to April 24. During this period, shipments from Australia grew from 10.63 million mt to 14.47 million mt, while those from Brazil stabilised at 2.93 million mt. Overseas shipments rose slightly with the improvement in weather conditions. The arrivals of fines, concentrates, lumps and pellets all grew at major Chinese ports.

This week, the port inventory dropped somewhat owing to the steel mills’ rigid-demand purchases. The inventory of fines added 0.8% to 63.47 million mt, and that of pellets was stable. The inventory of concentrates and lumps dipped 3.1% and 5.7% respectively on a weekly basis to 6.35 million mt and 11.93 million mt. Lump demand ballooned on the fifth round of coke price cuts. The BF mills got higher profits on dropping costs and thus increased the demand for high-priced concentrates. The steel mills may purchase some iron ore after Labour Day. As coke prices continue to fall, the profits of steel mills may grow again, and the future demand for lumps will increase.
Source: SMM