Dalian iron ore edges higher on firm demand outlook
BEIJING, March 25 (Reuters) - China’s iron ore futures edged higher on Monday as market expects strong demand at steel mills after winter production curbs are lifted by the end of this month.
Steel makers in smog-prone northern regions were ordered to trim output by as much as 50 percent from November to March to reduce toxic emissions and improve air quality.
Some cities have already removed the restrictions, and more are expected to lift by the end of this week.
Utilisation rates at steel mills across the country climbed 1.1 percentage points to 63.4 percent in the week to March 22, snapping two weeks of decline, according to data compiled by Mysteel consultancy.
“We expect steel mills to resume operations in April, which brings optimistic outlooks for iron ore market,” said analysts from Jinrui Futures in a note.
Meanwhile, the world’s No.2 iron ore miner Rio Tinto said on Sunday it was suspending rail operations in the Pilbara regions and mining at the Robe Valley operations in Western Australia due to a severe tropical cyclone.
That intensified the concerns of tight iron ore supply from Australia as Rio Tinto and other major miners, BHP and Fortescue, last week cleared their ships from ports.
The most-traded iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose 0.2 percent to 613 yuan ($91.26) a tonne as of 0134 GMT.
