Seaborne iron ore prices retreated on Wednesday February 5 while the market reacted to high steel inventories.
Fastmarkets iron ore indices
62% Fe fines, cfr Qingdao: $81.31 per tonne, down $2.45 per tonne.
62% Fe Pilbara Blend fines, cfr Qingdao: $80.15 per tonne, down $2.45 per tonne.
62% Fe low-alumina fines, cfr Qingdao: $82.54 per tonne, down $2.56 per tonne.
58% Fe fines high-premium, cfr Qingdao: $69.58 per tonne, down $1.48 per tonne.
65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cfr Qingdao: $97, down $2.60 per tonne.
62% Fe fines, fot Qingdao: 631 yuan per wet metric tonne (implied
62% Fe China Port Price: $82.36 per dry tonne), down 5 yuan per wet metric tonne.
Key drivers
The May iron ore contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) opened the trading session with a slight uptick, but largely trended downward until the end of the trading session, closing around 2.2% lower compared with the previous day's closing price.