Seaborne iron ore prices pushed up on Wednesday September 4 after looser production restrictions were confirmed for steelmakers in Tangshan.
Fastmarkets iron ore indices
62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $91.32 per tonne, up $2.18 per tonne.
62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $91.71 per tonne, up $2.18 per tonne.
62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $89.10 per tonne, up $2.30 per tonne.
58% Fe fines high-premium, cfr Qingdao: $80.42 per tonne, up $4.14 per tonne.
65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cfr Qingdao: $97.20 per tonne, up $1 per tonne.
62% Fe fines, fot Qingdao: 750 yuan per wet metric tonne (implied 62% Fe China Port Price, $96.14 per dry tonne), up 12 yuan per wmt.
Key drivers
Market participants believe the “looser” restrictions imposed on steelmakers in north China’s hub of Tangshan for September-October, has generated an increase in buying interest.
Around the end of August, a “suggestion draft” of the pollution emissions control measures was circulated to market participants, which was eventually finalized recently with no further amendments.
Some traders suggested that steel mills were stockpiling iron ore from the Chinese ports, over concerns that stricter production curbs could…
