Brazil increased ore exports by 7.9% y/y in March

Brazilian mining companies increased iron ore exports by 7.9% in March 2025 compared to the same month in 2024, to 28.4 million tons. Supplies have recovered after falling to a 22-month low in February, according to the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC).

Compared to the previous month, iron ore exports increased by 10.6%. In January-March 2025, shipments of raw materials amounted to 84.7 million tons, which is 1.2% more than in the same period of the previous year. Export revenue amounted to about $5.95 billion (-25.1% yoy). At the same time, in March, the figure grew by 16.3% m/m, but decreased by 16.5% y/y to $2 billion.

In January-March, the main destination for Brazilian iron ore exports was China, which accounted for 65% of supplies. Malaysia was the next largest importer with a share of 4.7%, while Oman consumed 4.6% of the raw material.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2024, Brazil increased its iron ore exports by 2.9% compared to 2023, from 378.14 million tons to 389.02 million tons. The main consumer is China – 276.79 million tons (+6.4%), which is 71.2% of total exports.

Global iron ore exports increased by 2% last year compared to 2023, from 1.57 billion tons to 1.6 billion tons. The growth rate of supplies slowed down after +5% in 2023.

Australia traditionally remains the main supplier, accounting for more than half of all global supplies – 866 million tons (+1.4% y/y). Brazil is the second largest exporter of raw materials.