Real Estate Data Disappoints, Sentiment Turns Pessimistic, Iron Ore Prices Decline Weakly [SMM Brief Commentary]

Today, iron ore futures fell weakly. The most-traded I2505 contract closed at 778.5 yuan/mt, down 1.14% throughout the day. Traders showed moderate enthusiasm for selling; steel mills remained cautious, with some tendering as needed; market transaction sentiment was average. In Shandong, mainstream transaction prices for PB fines were around 778-780 yuan/mt, down 10-15 yuan/mt from yesterday; in Tangshan, transaction prices for PB fines were around 785-790 yuan/mt, also down 10-15 yuan/mt from yesterday.

This week, SMM's global iron ore shipments totaled 30.69 million mt, down 10.5% WoW. Among them, Brazil's shipments saw a significant WoW decline of 32.6%; SMM's total iron ore arrivals in China reached 21.87 million mt, up sharply by 29.76% WoW. Supply rebounded to some extent. Additionally, real estate data released today showed a significant YoY decline in new starts for January-February, leading to pessimistic market sentiment and weak fluctuations in iron ore prices. Attention should be paid to downstream demand this week, which may support ore prices to stabilize and rebound.

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