Spot iron ore steadies during the week’s trade

KATM Exclusive

Iron ore prices in the spot seaborne market ended the sluggish week with marginal upward movement from the last week’s prices. Buying sentiments were subdued as the major buyers including Chinese steel mills shied away from sea-borne iron ore.

Onto the benchmark for seaborne spot iron ore prices, Platts assessed the 62% Fe IODEX & TSI Iron Ore Fines at $63.50/dmt CFR North China on Friday. Meanwhile, TSI 58% Fe Fines, 1.5% Al, CFR Qingdao port closed the week at $53.50/dmt.

Futures Market

Iron ore futures traded on the Dalian Commodity Exchange eased Friday, with the most liquid September contract last trading at Yuan 463/dmt ($69.39/dmt), down Yuan 3/dmt day on day, settling at Yuan 464.5/ dmt, flat over the same period.

Steel rebar futures were mixed, with the most actively traded October contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange last traded at Yuan 3959/ mt ($593.31/mt), down Yuan 17/mt on day, and last settled at Yuan 3974/mt, up Yuan 37/mt over the same period.