After opening, DCE iron ore futures first fell and then rose. The most-traded contract I2509 eventually closed at 790.5, with a daily increase of 0.76%. Traders were enthusiastic about selling, while steel mills adopted a wait-and-see attitude, with weak purchase willingness.

[Domestic iron ore market brief: Iron ore concentrate prices in west Liaoning may decline slightly] The market prices of domestic ore in west Liaoning are relatively stable, with ex-factory prices (wet basis, excluding tax) for 66% grade iron ore concentrates ranging from 700 to 710 yuan/mt. The overall operating rate of mines and beneficiation plants remains low, and mines show strong reluctance to budge on prices.

According to the SMM survey, on August 6, the operating rate of blast furnaces at 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 86.89%, down 0.1 percentage point WoW. 

As of August 5, the operating rate of 50 electric furnace steel mills nationwide, which mainly produce construction steel, stood at 40.68%, up 2.86% WoW from the previous period; the capacity utilization rate was 41.2%, up 2.59% WoW; the daily average production of building materials was 91,600 mt, up 5,800 mt WoW.

However, due to allegations that importers are circumventing the existing anti-dumping duties by importing wire rod products with slightly lower carbon content, an anti-circumvention investigation has been initiated on the Chinese products under investigation. According to data from the General Administration of Customs, the total export volume of the products under investigation from China to Thailand in the first six months of 2025 was 371,600 mt, accounting for 42.75% of China's total export volume of the products under investigation, with an overall significant impact. In extreme cases, this may lead to a decrease of 371,600 mt in China's total export volume in 2026. Data shows that the top five countries in terms of export volume of the products under investigation from China are Thailand, Vietnam, South Korea, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Thailand ranks first. Meanwhile, in the ranking of changes in the total export destinations of China's steel products from January to June 2025, Thailand also ranks second in terms of incremental volume. Thailand has already imposed relevant anti-dumping duties on most of China's steel products and initiated an anti-circumvention investigation on China's cold-rolled steel plate products in July 2025, which will further increase the difficulty of exporting domestic steel products to Thailand.

After opening, DCE iron ore futures first fell and then rose. The most-traded contract I2509 eventually closed at 790.5, with a daily increase of 0.76%. Traders were enthusiastic about selling, while steel mills adopted a wait-and-see attitude, with weak purchase willingness.

[Domestic iron ore market brief: Prices of iron ore concentrates in Tangshan region may have some upside potential] Prices of iron ore concentrates in Tangshan region were relatively stable at the beginning of the week, with the delivery-to-factory price (dry basis, tax included) for 66% grade ore ranging from 920 to 930 yuan/mt. At the beginning of the week, producers mostly adopted a wait-and-see attitude towards steel companies' orders. However, as the weather improved, the supply of iron ore concentrates from Chengde region to Tangshan gradually resumed, but the available resources remained tight, and the overall market resources were still in short supply.