FOCUS: China eyes steel scrap futures to reduce reliance on iron ore imports

The world's largest ferrous scrap market is set to get a boost from the impending launch of a futures contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE).

The scrap futures contract will be based on shredded scrap, which is one of the key steelmaking raw materials for steel mills in China and can be used by all kinds of furnaces, DCE senior manager Yang Shuai said at an industry conference in southern China last week.
"Chinese steelmakers currently use around 30 million tonnes of shredded scrap as raw material, with ample room for growth in the future [with] China continuing to look toward producing high-quality steel," he said.
Shredded scrap also tends to have a more uniform quality and specification compared to heavy melting scrap, according to Shuai.
"Therefore, it is easier to ensure uniformity and the same yield of molten steel," he added.

However, Yang did...

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