Steelmaking Raw Materials Prices Strong in China

Ferro-Alloys.com: Iron Ore and Coking Coal, steelmaking raw materials prices climbed in China to the fullest since March, encouraged by steel firm consumption in China.

The steel construction product rebar stockpiles held by the Chinese traders have fallen from more than a third from a 5 year high in mid-March with construction activity.

The average daily crude steel output at Chinese Steel Mills reached 2.56 Million tonnes keeping the strong demand in April, the most since atleast May 2014. “The increase in operations at steel mills in China following the winter-induced production curbs has seen demand pick up strongly in recent weeks,” said by an Analyst.

“Combined with the better-than-expected economic data, this has boosted sentiment in the steel sector.”

The most-traded September Iron Ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose as far as 494 yuan ($78) a tonne in early deals, a level last seen on March 19. It later pared gains, trading at 484.50 yuan by 0229 GMT, up 0.1 percent, as steel futures retreated.

• [Editor:mab]