BHP's China Jimblebar ore stocks hit five-month low after ban removal
Portside inventories of BHP's Jimblebar fines, a type of iron-ore, in China slid to a five-month low after Beijing ended a months long dispute with the global miner, but the drawdown has not weighed on prices.
The world's largest iron ore consumer in late April removed its ban on purchases of certain BHP ore products including the Jimblebar fines that had piled up at ports, raising expectations portside stocks of the brand would be drawn down rapidly and weigh on prices of the key steelmaking ingredient.
Analysts had mixed views on whether the drawdown was in line with normal levels or was slower than expected.
Stocks of Jimblebar fines, one of BHP's flagship products at 15 major Chinese ports fell 3.1% from late April to 8.42-million tons as of May 12, the lowest level since late December, said three traders with knowledge of the matter.
That said, the current inventory of the iron ore brand was still nearly five times higher than last September.
"Some steel mills had switched to the usage of other iron ore products and they need to readjust their 'menu' for blended furnaces feedstock before buying more Jimblebar fines," said one analyst on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the matter.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) was at 812 yuan ($119.64) per metric ton by 0314 GMT, a rise of 2.3% from late April.
In mid-April, China removed a ban on procurement of BHP's seaborne cargoes following a visit by the miner's top executives.
Last September, China's state iron-ore buyer banned purchases of BHP's Jimblebar fines, followed by the miner's Jinbao fines last November and Newman fines in March.
Article Enquiry
Email Article
Save Article
Feedback
To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here
Research Reports
Projects
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
The Beneficiation Academy is a certified training institution that follows all compliance legislation and is accredited with various Sector...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Sulzer South Africa, established in 1922, partners with critical industries like power, oil & gas, water, mining, and chemicals to boost...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
