China: ROM iron ore output edges up by over 4% m-o-m in Oct'24

• Output hike follows firm demand from mills
  
  
• But growth rate slows from Sep's 12.4% spike
  
  

Mysteel Global: China's ROM iron ore production totalled 86.4 million tonnes (mnt) in October 2024, higher by 4.4% than the 82.8 mnt recorded in September, according to the latest data from the country's National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). However, the growth rate slowed significantly from September's 12.4% spike. On a y-o-y basis, October's output was largely unchanged.

Meanwhile, in January-October 2024, China produced a total of 871.5 mnt of run-of-mine (ROM) iron ore, a rise of 2.8% from the same period last year.

In terms of region, except for Northeast China's Liaoning province, the major iron ore mining provinces in China - namely, North China's Hebei and Shanxi and Southeast China's Sichuan - all posted positive m-o-m growths in October, thanks to operation resumptions of many miners in these regions, market sources said.

Last month, production enthusiasm among domestic iron ore miners was mainly boosted by steelmakers' firm demand for the material, as many mills ramped up their steel output to chase profit margins.

The daily hot metal output of the 247 Chinese steel mills under Mysteel's tracking averaged 2.34 mnt in October, 101,400 tonnes (t) or 4.5% higher than September's daily average of 2.24 mnt.

However, iron ore prices in the country were more subject to fading market confidence over the past month, with support from the macroeconomic stimulus gradually petering out, a market watcher based in Shanghai said.

As a result, prices of both imported and domestic iron ore weakened last month. For example, prices of 66% Fe grade iron ore concentrates in Tangshan in North China's Hebei dropped by RMB 41/dry metric tonne (dmt) m-o-m to RMB 967/dmt ($133.6/dmt) exw, including 13% VAT, on 31 October.

Moreover, Chinese steelmakers preferred imported iron ore over domestic supplies, as the former was more cost-effective. This led domestic miners' in-plant stocks of iron ore concentrates to mount slightly over the month. As of 31 October, total inventories of iron ore concs among the 186 Chinese miners under Mysteel's regular survey rose to 713,900 t, growing by 7.9% from 3 October.

Note: This article has been written in accordance with a content exchange agreement between Mysteel Global and BigMint.