Iron ore prices rebounded on Wednesday, with the benchmark contract in Singapore drawing support near $90 per ton after tumbling to an 11-month low in the previous session on weakening global steel demand.
While worries about a looming global recession and a struggling Chinese economy persist, some support for the steelmaking ingredient has emerged amid lower exports from top suppliers Australia and Brazil this month.
The most-traded January iron ore on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange ended morning trade 1.2 percent higher at 679 yuan ($93.04) a ton. It hit a seven-week low of 662.50 yuan on Tuesday.
On the Singapore Exchange, benchmark November iron ore was up 1.2 percent at $89.85 a ton. It climbed as much as $90 earlier in the session, after sinking below $89 the day before.
Iron ore exports from Australia this month totaled 61.9 million tons so far, compared with 76.8 million tons in September, Refinitiv data showed. Exports from Brazil totaled 23.4 million tons, down from September’s 31.8 million tons.
Poor demand brought portside iron ore inventory in China to 131.2 million tons, as of Oct. 21, marking its first weekly rise after steadily declining for five weeks, SteelHome consultancy data showed.
