Increase in Port Arrivals & Decline in Port Cargo Pick-up, Iron Ore Inventory at 35 Ports Continued to Accumulate

As of November 22, the total iron ore inventory at the 35 ports monitored by SMM reached 148.86 million mt, up 350,000 mt WoW and up 38.37 million mt YoY. The daily average port pick-up volume of imported ore was 3.179 million mt, down 4,000 mt from the previous period, but up 230,000 mt YoY. Currently, port arrivals are still on an upward trend. On the demand side, due to reduced profits at steel mills, most steel enterprises adopt a restock-as-needed strategy, leading to a recent decline in pig iron production and a weakened demand for iron ore concentrate, resulting in a slight decrease in port pick-up volume. Therefore, overall, port inventory rose. Looking ahead to this week, port arrivals are expected to remain stable. Considering the potential increase in pig iron production at steel mills, port pick-up volume may see a slight rise, which could lead to a slight decrease in port inventory.