MMi Daily Iron Ore Report (December 9)

[Grain-Oriented Silicon Steel Prices to Remain Stable Next Week, With Continued Divergence Between High-End and Low-End Prices] This week, the cold-rolled grain-oriented silicon steel market remained stable overall, with mediocre transaction performance and a continued divergence between high-grade and low-grade products. Market feedback indicated that ferrous metals futures continued to weaken this week, weighing somewhat on market sentiment, but spot grain-oriented silicon steel prices as a whole remained firm and stable. In April, ordering costs at top-tier enterprises remained steady and were not raised, while traders maintained a relatively rational ordering stance, with no obvious wait-and-see or cautious sentiment.

【SMM Steel】Mobarakeh Steel Co. said its facility sustained "another heavy attack" on Mar 31, the second since Feb 28. Affiliate Sefid Dasht Steel was also damaged. No precise production status was given. Sefid Dasht has 800,000 t/y capacity and supplies sponge iron to Mobarakeh. Before the attack, Iran expected the plants to resume operations soon.

Demand Growth Was Limited This Week, Total Inventory Continued to Decline Slowly