BEIJING: Iron ore futures prices were rangebound on Friday but were set for a weekly loss, pressured by the seasonally slowing demand in top consumer China as well as concerns over demand prospects in 2025.
The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended morning trade 0.06% higher at 775.5 yuan ($106.25) a metric ton, posing a weekly drop of 2.9% so far.
The benchmark January iron ore on the Singapore Exchange lost 0.5% to $101.3 a ton, as of 0452 GMT.
It has fallen 2.5% so far this week.
The continued decline in hot metal output, which is typically used to gauge iron ore demand, put prices of the key steelmaking ingredient under pressure, said analysts.
Average daily hot metal output slid for a fifth straight week, data from consultancy Mysteel showed. Output fell by 1.3% week-on-week to its lowest level since early October at 2.29 million tons in the week to Dec. 20, per data.
However, that was 1.2% higher than the same period in 2023, Mysteel data showed, suggesting demand was resilient, limiting the decline in prices.
Iron ore slips as supply worries ease
Additionally, the signal that the US Federal Reserve will slow down rate cuts in 2025 supported the dollar, weighing on the greenback-priced commodities. Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE advanced, with coking coal and coke up 1.21% and 1.57%, respectively.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mixed.
Rebar nudged up 0.09%, stainless steel added 0.19% while hot-rolled coil edged down 0.06%, and wire rod slid 3.38%.
China’s steel demand is forecast to fall 1.5% in 2025 and drop 4.4% in 2024 from the year before, the state-backed China Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute (MPI) said on Friday.
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