More than 67,000 lots of the Singapore Exchange's 65% Fe iron ore swaps contract, which is settled against Fastmarkets' daily index for iron ore 65% Fe Brazil-origin fines, cfr Qingdao, were heard to have been traded in January 2021, the largest monthly volume since its launch in December 2018.
The 65% Fe iron ore contract is traded in 100-tonne lots and its total volume for 2020 was close to 420,000 lots. Demand for high-grade and low-purity iron ore products remained firm at the start of this year, despite Chinese mills experiencing squeezed margins from stronger raw materials costs. Some sources cited high coke prices as the main driver of high-grade demand in the physical market. The January average...