Iron Ore Pellet Inventory At 10 Major Chinese Ports Bucks Downward Trend

SHANGHAI, May 11 (SMM) -  Iron ore inventories across the ten major ports in China fell 3.1% MoM to 88.78 million mt as of April 28. Among the four major types of iron ore, only pellet stocks rose.

The inventories of fines, concentrates and lumps declined 0.4%, 9.1% and 15.5% respectively on a monthly basis to 63.47 million mt, 6.35 million mt and 11.93 million mt. Pig iron production rose in early April, boosting iron ore demand, thus driving port stocks to fall. As coke prices saw five rounds of cuts, the demand for lumps increased significantly. With improving profit margins of steel mills, the demand for more expensive iron ore also picked up.

However, the inventory of pellets increased 3.9% month-on-month to 7.02 million mt due to rising operating rates of domestic pellet plants and growing imports of concentrates.