China increased iron ore production by 5.7% y/y in the first half of 2023

In January-June 2023, iron ore production in China increased by 5.7% compared to the same period in 2022 – up to 476.76 million tons. SteelOrbis reports about it with the reference to data from the National Bureau of Statistics of China (NBS).

In June, Chinese mining companies increased iron ore production by 1.8% compared to June 2022, and by 9.7% compared to May 2023 – up to 85.15 million tons.

Iron ore prices were volatile during June. At the beginning of the month, the quotations increased, and the rest of the period fluctuated in a limited range. The increase in the profitability of steel plants and the growth of raw material futures contributed to the increase in prices compared to May.

Imports of iron ore imports to China in January-June increased by 7.7% compared to the same period in 2022 – up to 576.1 million tons. In June, China imported 95.5 million tons of iron ore, which is 0.7% less compared to the previous month and 7.3% more y/y.

By the end of 2023, as experts expect, iron ore prices could fall by 28% amid falling steel production and demand in China. Morgan Stanley and Kallanish forecast iron ore quotation at the end of 2023 at $90/t, CBA – $100/t.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2022, China reduced production of iron ore by 1% compared to 2021 – to 967.9 million tons. In December 2022, iron ore production decreased by 1.2% m/m and grew by 2.4% y/y – to 78.6 million tons.