SINGAPORE: Iron ore futures declined on Friday and were poised for weekly losses, as weakening steel demand and production cuts pressured prices in top consumer China.
The most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) fell 1.16% to 766 yuan ($107.54) a metric ton by 0202 GMT.
The contract was set to end the week down 3.95%.
The benchmark December iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 1.79% lower at $102.05 a ton on Friday.
The contract has declined 3.9% so far this week.
To control deflation, China has sought to eliminate overcapacity in several industries, with the steel sector in focus where rapid capacity growth has weighed on profitability, said analysts from ANZ.
Data from SteelHome showed blast furnace production cuts in the major steelmaking region of North China leading to a decline in steel output.
Ore prices are expected to remain bearish, with steel demand weakening sequentially in the third quarter as consumption in real estate, infrastructure, and manufacturing declined year-on-year, with no significant improvement seen in the fourth quarter, said Chinese broker Galaxy Futures.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil called for European patriotism to protect the EU’s steel industry, following the European Commission’s proposal last month to cut tariff-free steel import quotas by almost half while doubling the out-of-quota duty to 50%.
ArcelorMittal, the world’s second-largest steelmaker, beat third-quarter earnings expectations and gave a positive outlook for 2026, though it observed that overall demand remained weak in the quarter and there were no signs of restocking.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE gained ground, with coking coal and coke up 0.16% and 0.11%, respectively. Most steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose.
Rebar gained 0.43%, wire rod edged up 0.06%, and stainless steel firmed 0.08%, while hot-rolled coil dipped 0.06%.
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