BEIJING — Prices of iron ore futures dropped on Thursday as traders weighed fears of weakening demand from top consumer China and the potential impact of upcoming Sino-US talks on trade tariffs.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended morning trade 2.17 percent lower at 697.5 yuan ($96.43) a metric ton.
The benchmark June iron ore on the Singapore Exchange lost 1.19 percent to $97.15 a ton.
“It’s mainly resumed expectations of steel output cuts that are driving the market movement with price fall of steelmaking ingredients more dramatic than that of steel,” said Zhuo Guiqiu, an analyst at broker Jinrui Futures.
Relevant authorities are actively advancing the national crude steel output control, state-backed China Metallurgical News said, citing officials from the steel association.
In March, China unveiled its plan to restructure its giant steel industry through production cuts, without elaborating the timing and scale.
