China iron ore port stocks extended decline as steel mills restocked

SHANGHAI, Mar 20 (SMM) – Inventories of seaborne iron ore at Chinese ports continued to trend lower this week, as steel mills stepped up purchases to replenish their depleted stocks.

SMM data showed that stocks across 35 Chinese ports totalled 109.34 million mt as of March 20, down 820,000 mt from a week ago and 27.48 million mt lower than a year ago. This marked a sixth straight week of declines, compared to a draw of 400,000 mt in the previous week.

Improved demand exceeded slightly increased arrivals this week, leading to the decline in stocks. SMM data also revealed that daily average iron ore deliveries from the 35 ports increased 6,000 mt from the prior week to 2.74 million mt this week.

In anticipation of increased shipments from Australia, iron ore arrivals at Chinese ports are likely to continue to rise, helping slow the inventory decline.