China's major ports witness decline in imported iron ore stocks

According to the iron ore price report released yesterday by China, stockpiles of iron ore at 25 major Chinese ports had dropped to a three-year low for the period 26 February to 1 March, for which new data was released by mysteel.com, a Chinese internet portal dedicated to the iron and steel industry.

China's major ports have seen their iron ore stockpiles fall due to lower imports, which analysts say will ultimately help to bring down overcapacity that plagues China's steelmakers.

As of 1 March, combined iron ore inventories at 25 major Chinese ports declined by 680,000 tonnes to 76.87 million tonnes, or 0.87 per cent decline  month on month,  data showed.

The market failed to maintain an upward trend after the seven-day Spring Festival, which ended on 15 February, and inventories dropped due to slack stock index futures.

Zhang Jiabin, an analyst at umetal.com, said iron ore imports dwindled due to seasonal weather that affected shipments at Port Hedland in Australia, adding that the world's major iron ore mines, such as those in Brazil, also exported less in February.

One major factor for the decline was the hurricanes in Australia which affected iron ore shipments. Some major Australian ports were closed temporarily, which lifted global expectations of a rise in prices for the iron ore in transit, the report said.