The iron ore price has extended gains, pushing above the $US51 mark as traders hope steel production could be set to increase.
Iron ore rose 2.4 per cent to $US51.60 a tonne, lifting for the second straight session.
The commodity price has been showing signs of strength recently after factory workers returned from the Lunar New Year holiday, and some observers expect steel output to rise this month as a traditional peak season approaches.
Traders have also been encouraged by Chinese central bank moves to cut the amount of reserves banks need to hold, freeing up cash to lend out to boost economic activity.
London-listed Australian miners also got a boost from the rise in the commodity. BHP Billiton spiked 5.1 per cent, while rival Rio Tinto added 3.5 per cent.
Investors are also digesting Rio Tinto’s latest round of cost-cutting, with hundreds of jobs set to go at its WA iron ore operations.
The latest session’s trade closed before news broke that iron ore miner Samarco, a joint venture between BHP Billiton and Vale, has agreed with the Brazilian government to pay more than $8.6 billion in damages for the deadly spill of a tailings dam in November.
Source: Business Spectator