Prices for seaborne iron ore concentrate and pellet decreased in the week ended Friday March 26 amid weak demand due to China's ongoing emissions restrictions, market sources told Fastmarkets.
Fastmarkets iron ore indices
65% Fe blast furnace pellet, cfr Qingdao: $220.84 per tonne, down $10.24 per tonne.
66% Fe concentrate, cfr Qingdao: $188.13 per tonne, down $4.05 per tonne.
Key drivers
Seaborne prices for various iron ore pellets from India had dipped compared with previous weeks, market sources said.
A trader source in Hong Kong said that more pellet offers emerged and some deals were done at lower levels compared with past weeks, resulting in the decrease in pellet prices.
This was probably due to participants looking to reach sales targets before the financial year in India ends, the trader source added. The financial year in India ends on March 31.
Though
emissions restrictions in the northern Chinese city of Tangshan weakened overall iron ore demand this past week, demand for direct charge materials could be supported by these controls, market sources told Fastmarkets.
The...