China reduced iron ore imports by 3.1% y/y in January-August 2022

Chinese steel companies in January-August 2022 reduced the import of iron ore by 3.1% compared to the same period in 2021 – to 772.9 million tons. SteelOrbis reports about it with the reference to data from the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

In August 2022, China imported 96.2 million tons of iron ore, which is 1.3% less than in August 2021. Iron ore imports to China in August 2022 increased by 5.4% compared to the previous month.

In August 2022, iron ore prices fell sharply against the background of falling futures prices on the Dalyan Commodity Exchange and increasing supplies. Later, prices began to recover. This trend lasted until the middle of the month. This was facilitated by high utilization of blast furnaces in China. However, at the end of August, the iron ore prices decreased again due to high warehouse stocks.

Steel exports from China in August 2022 amounted to 6.15 million tons. This is 21.8% more y/y and 7.8% less than in the previous month. The reduction is due to low demand in foreign markets. Steel imports to China in August 2022 decreased by 15.8% y/y, to 839,000 tons. In a monthly comparison, the indicator increased by 13.2%.

In January-August 2022, Chinese steelmakers reduced steel exports by 3.9% compared to the same period in 2021 – to 46.2 million tons. Steel imports to China in 8 months of 2022 amounted to 7.4 million tons, which 21.2% less compared to January-August 2021.

As GMK Center reported earlier, in 2021 Chinese steelmakers reduced the import of iron ore by 4.3% compared to 2020 – to 1.12 billion tons. Steel production in the country over the past year decreased by 3%, to 1.03 billion tons. In 2022, China plans to continue reducing production.