SINGAPORE/BEIJING- Iron ore futures prices extended gains to a second straight session on Tuesday, underpinned by mounting hopes of improving demand for the key steelmaking ingredient in top consumer China in the coming weeks.
The most-traded September iron ore on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade up 5.63 percent at 815.5 yuan ($112.73) per metric ton, its highest level since March 25, following a rise of more than 3 percent on Monday.
The benchmark May iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 3.54 percent higher at $107.95 a ton, its highest level since March 26, after rising over 6 percent in the previous session.
Overall macro expectations have somewhat improved after China’sannouncement regarding policies including crude steel control, analysts at Huatai Futures said in a note.
China last Wednesday revealed plans to manage crude steel output this year.
“Steel margins have improved, which may encourage steelmakers to resume production later, thus generating more needs for ore,” Huatai Futures said, while citing high portside ore stocks and higher-than-usual shipments as potential headwinds.
