Iron ore inventories at the 33 major Chinese seaports monitored edged down 0.66 percent week on week to 84.1 million metric tons (tonnes) as of November 16, according to the Xinhua-China Iron Ore Price Index (Xinhua-China IOP Index) released on Tuesday. The index, compiled through research and analysis of 33 selected major seaports, shows that the price index for iron ore imports of 62 percent purity grade was unchanged from a week before to 47 by November 16; and the index for iron ore imports of 58 percent purity grade was also unchanged week on week to 43.
During the period of November 10-16, the iron ore prices remained sluggish due to soft demand from the Chinese steel mills and the continuous increase in ore supplies, said analysts. Meanwhile, on the one hand, the seasonal demand shrink has showed its role in hitting the steel market. On the other hand, the fall in prices of raw materials continued to drag down prices of the finished steel products.
With the continuous fall in steel prices, steel mills suffered a lot in the main business revenue and reduced their enthusiasm for production. Compared to the sluggish downstream demand, the large mine producers in the world remained active in production. Given the glut of iron ore supplies in the international ore market, the iron ore prices will be under pressure for a long time, said analysts.
Developed by Xinhua News Agency, the Xinhua-China Iron Ore Price Index (Xinhua-China IOP Index) is released every Tuesday on the Xinhua08 platform. The index closely tracks changes of the country's iron ore market on the basis of in-depth surveys of China's major sea ports, iron ore traders, and steel makers, as well as analysis of Customs statistics, and serves as a reference indicator that is able to reflect changes in iron ore stocks in China. The original data was collected via the global data and information collection network of Xinhua and put together with comments from industry experts in the iron and steel production, wholesale, and retail sectors.
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