China Iron Ore Imports Exceed Real Demand, CISA Says

In  article in Chinamining. org, China Iron Ore Imports Exceed Real Demand, iron ore imports by China, the world's largest buyer, have exceeded real demand by 50 million metric tons this year. The recent gains in spot iron ore prices are  said to be"speculative," by Luo Bingsheng, the vice chairman of the China Iron & Steel Association.

China's iron ore imports surged to a record this year, hurting the group's bid to negotiate a contract price cut bigger than the 33 percent offered by Rio Tinto Group and BHP Billiton Ltd. The nation is looking at cutting the number of licensed importers, industry minister Li Yizhong reiterated today.

For the first eight months, iron ore imports gained 32 percent to 405 million tons from a year ago, China's customs said in September. Imports by traders accounted for 44 percent of China's total purchases in the first six months, compared with 30 percent a year earlier, the steel association had said in July.The cash price for Australian ore delivered to China has risen 11 percent in the past five weeks, according to the Steel Index.