BEIJING- Iron ore futures extended gains on Friday to their highest in more than one week and were on track for a weekly gain, supported by resilient consumption and a brighter demand outlook in top consumer China thanks to its latest property stimulus efforts.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) ended daytime trade 2.18 percent higher at 891.5 yuan ($123.47) a metric ton, the highest since May 8. It has logged a gain of 2.8 percent week-on-week.
The benchmark June iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 1.37 percent higher at $118.15 a ton, also the highest since May 8. It hasposted a rise of 1.8 percent so far this week.
Near-term ore demand remained resilient with the average daily hot metal output among steelmakers surveyed climbing by 1 percent week-on-week to 2.37 million tons as of May 17, the highest since November 2023, data from consultancy Mysteel showed.
Bolstering sentiment is also news that China announced some of its most sweeping measures yet to stabilize the crisis-hit property sector, allowing local governments to buy “some” apartments, relaxing mortgage rules and pledging further efforts to deliver unfinished homes.
