China iron ore imports jump in April on firm demand
BEIJING, May 7 (Reuters) - China’s iron ore imports in April rose 11.4% from a month earlier on robust demand from steelmakers, as downstream sectors started to emerge from lockdowns to contain the coronavirus epidemic.
Arrivals of the steelmaking ingredient were 95.71 million tonnes last month, data released on Thursday by the General Administration of Customs showed.
That compares with imports of 85.91 million tonnes in March and 80.77 million tonnes a year earlier, when shipments from Brazil’s top miner Vale SA were disrupted after a tailings dam disaster.
In the first four months of 2020, China brought in 358.4 million tonnes of iron ore, up 5.3% from 340.21 million in the corresponding period last year, according to customs.
Reuters reported a higher number earlier for April based on figures released in a customs statement which rounded January-April purchases to 360 million tonnes.
“On a monthly basis, imports jumped as shipments from big miners were typically lower in the first quarter due to seasonal factors like weather conditions,” said Zhao Yu, an analyst with Huatai Futures.
Vessel-tracking and port data from Refinitiv showed arrivals of iron ore in April from Brazil jumped 12.7% from a month earlier, while imports from Australia edged up 0.7%.
