Iron ore futures fall toward CNY 700 on China demand concerns
Iron ore futures are falling toward CNY 700 per ton, hovering near 14-month lows as concerns over demand in top consumer China persist amid record contraction in July yuan loans.
Iron ore futures fell toward CNY 700 per ton, hovering near 14-month lows amid persistent concerns over demand in top consumer China.
Recent data showed China’s new yuan loans posted a record contraction in July as seasonal factors and weak household credit demand weighed on lending activity.
This points to subdued property and infrastructure investment, key drivers of steel consumption in China, and in turn signals weaker demand for iron ore.
Meanwhile, industry data showed blast furnace operating rates among Chinese steel mills rose to 82.64% last week, up 0.32 percentage points from the previous week.
Elsewhere, reports indicated that China’s state iron ore buyer reached an agreement with Anglo American in April on an annual supply contract for the key steelmaking ingredient.