A total of 1,720,000 mt of iron ores was traded for the week ended Jan 29, up 16.22% as compared to previous week.
During the week, there were some market concerns over reduced iron ore imports for 2021, as the Beijing policymakers had reportedly planned to reduce Chinese steel production to cut carbon emission.
Nevertheless, PBF accounted the largest market share at 59% for the week, then it was followed by Yandi fines at 15%, and finally by Carajas fines at 11%.
Mainstream fines for cost effectiveness
Larger mills were heard to use mainstream fines like PBF for its cost-effectiveness, while smaller mills preferred lower grade fines like Yandi fines to save costs and for its low-contaminant levels.
Some northern China-based mills were also heard to be seeking for discounted ores like the Super Special fines and Atlas fines to stay afloat from the negative steel margins.
Meanwhile, there were still positive steel margins to be made from flat steel products, which resulted some Hebei-based mills to seek for high grade fines to reduce the expensive coke usage.
Better lump premium on tight supply
Lump supply remained tight among Chinese ports, due to high consumption rates as mills increased lump usages to comply with environmental regulations.
Apparently, the mills were heard to be only interested in Pilbara Blend lump and Newman Blend lump for their high Fe contents.
Going forward, lump demand is expected to slide later in March, due to the easing of the sintering restrictions among Chinese steel mills.
