The SMM Blast Furnace Operating Rate Slightly Increased, Iron Ore Prices Fluctuated Rangebound [SMM Brief Review]

Today, the iron ore futures continued to fluctuate upward. The most-traded contract I2505 finally closed at 791.5, with a daily increase of 1.09%. Traders sold goods according to market conditions; steel mills restocked as needed, with moderate purchase willingness; the market transaction atmosphere was average. The mainstream transaction prices of PB fines in Shandong region were around 785-790 yuan/mt, stable compared to yesterday's prices; the transaction prices of PB fines in Tangshan region were around 800 yuan/mt, stable compared to yesterday's prices. According to the SMM survey, on April 2, the blast furnace operating rate of 242 steel mills surveyed by SMM was 87.49%, up 0.02 percentage points MoM. The blast furnace capacity utilization rate was 89.40%, up 0.17 percentage points MoM. The daily average pig iron production of the sample steel mills was 2.4131 million mt, up 4,600 mt MoM. During this period, 5 blast furnaces were under maintenance, and 4 blast furnaces resumed production. The maintenance of steel mills in the current week was mainly for normal annual inspections, and the overall willingness of steel mills for maintenance is not strong at present, with pig iron production showing an upward trend, providing support for ore prices. Considering that the most-traded iron ore contract is expected to roll over and the tariff policy is about to be implemented, market sentiment is relatively cautious, and ore prices mainly fluctuate rangebound.