Latest News

Dalian iron ore falls on sluggish demand recovery, doubts on long-lasting China outlook

Dalian iron ore futures rates extended their decline on Monday, dragged down by sluggish nearterm demand healing and growing doubts on midtolong term prospects for the crucial steelmaking active ingredient in leading customer China.

The most-traded May iron ore agreement on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) traded 2.08% lower at 872.5 yuan ($ 121.21) a metric ton, since 0215 GMT.

Ore demand stayed under pressure amid slower-than-expected in hot metal output and we do not see any strong driving factors for a price rebound for the moment, analysts in the beginning Futures said in a note.

Daily hot metal output among mills surveyed declined for a. 2nd session by 0.3% on-week to 2.23 million lots since March. 1, the most affordable because early February, data from consultancy. Mysteel showed.

Installing doubts on whether policymakers worldwide's. second-largest economy would reveal forceful stimulus to. deal with continuous debt crisis, home concerns during the annual. National People's Congress (NPC) which will kick off on Tuesday. are likewise weighing on belief.

The focus (of NPC) is most likely to be on climate targets,. which could ultimately compromise need for iron ore, analysts at. ANZ bank said.

The scenario will likely change in March when portside ORE. inventories will shift to a decline from the continuous boost. and there is a reasonably big space for demand healing the. current level of hot metal output, analyst at Everbright versus. Futures wrote in a note.

The benchmark April iron ore on the Singapore. Exchange was, nevertheless, 0.13% greater at $113.4 a lot, on the back. of a softening U.S dollar in the middle of lower treasury yields.

Other steelmaking components on the DCE also weakened, with. coking coal and coke down 2.1% and 2.13%,. respectively.

Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were. broadly lower. Rebar fell 1.4%, hot-rolled coil. dropped 1.05%, wire rod shed 0.22% and. stainless steel lost 0.68%.

(source: Reuters)