The iron ore price
fell below $100 a tonne for the first time in over five weeks on signs that the
crisis in China’s steel industry is worsening.
According to Fastmarkets MB,
benchmark 62% Fe fines imported into Northern China were changing hands for
$98.63 a tonne Tuesday morning, down 3%.
The
most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity
Exchange ended daytime trade 5% lower at 682 yuan ($98.57) a tonne, having
touched a one-week low of 680.50 yuan earlier in the session.
Steel
prices also stretched losses after several Chinese cities, including Shenzhen
and Dalian, escalated covid-19 restrictions to contain outbreaks.
Steel
production in the key center of Tangshan will fall by more than 8 million
tonnes in the second half due to plans to restrict output, Minmetals Futures
said in a note on Tuesday. The hub produced about
75 million tonnes in the first six months, according to Mysteel.