Prices of Dalian iron ore futures fell for the fourth consecutive sessionon Wednesday to close at their lowest in more than a year, as a slew of weak Chinese economic data weighed on sentiment in the top consumer’s steel market.
The most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 3.09% lower at 689.5 yuan ($96.95) a metric ton, finishing at its weakest level since Aug. 22, 2023.
The benchmark October iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 1.68% lower at $92.05 a ton, as of 0710 GMT.
“Last week’s blindly optimistic and irrational sentiment rally is now being rationally unwound, as the market once again comes to terms with the realisation of terrible downstream steel demand-side fundamentals in China”, said Atilla Widnell, managing director at Navigate Commodities.
Despite numerous policies aimed at stemming the downturn in house prices and corresponding losses in wealth, it looks like the market has made its peace that these measures will not directly or immediately contribute to healthier construction activity and associated steel consumption, added Widnell.
Growth in China’s services sector activity slowed in August despite the summer travel peak, a private-sector survey showed on Wednesday.
The data comes on the back of slowing growth in China’s new home prices, as its crisis-hit property sector struggles to find its bottom.
Immediate challenges facing China’s steel sector also include the domestic business environment, a rise in protectionism globally and local policies, said ANZ analysts in a note.
Meanwhile, inventories across 45 Chinese ports rebounded to post a month-on-month gain of 3.4 million tons, said Chinese financial information site Hexun Futures.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE plummeted, with coking coal and coke down 5.21% and 4.66%, respectively.
Most steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost further ground. Rebar lost about 2.7%, hot-rolled coil shed around 2.6%, stainless steel dropped 1%, and wire rod was flat.
Source: Reuters