BEIJING, May 9 (Reuters) – Iron ore futures traded in a tight range on Friday as investors weighed prospects of easing Sino-U.S. trade tensions against seasonally weak demand from top consumer China.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) closed daytime trade 0.57% lower at 696 yuan ($96.06) a metric ton, clocking a drop of 1.2% this week.
The benchmark June iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was up 0.65% at $97.15 a ton as of 0740 GMT, taking its increase to 1.5% so far this week.
The United States unveiled details of a new trade agreement with Britain and President Donald Trump also predicted that punitive U.S. tariffs on Beijing of 145% would likely come down, the latest sign of a softening tone between the two superpowers.
But analysts and traders maintained a cautious stance ahead of the Sino-U.S. talks scheduled for this weekend.
While near-term ore demand remained resilient, signs of weakening downstream steel consumption have threatened to hinder any upside room, said analysts.
The average daily hot metal output – typically used to gauge iron ore demand – nudged 0.1% higher week-on-week to 2.46 million tons as of May 8, the highest since October 2023, a survey by consultancy Mysteel showed.
China’s iron ore imports climbed by 9.8% from March to April to their highest since December, as improved margins encouraged mills to book more seaborne cargoes.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE lost further ground, with coking coal and coke down 1.79% and 2.1%, respectively.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange retreated. Rebar shed 1.63%, hot-rolled coil lost 1.34%, wire rod fell 2.1% and stainless steel edged 0.16% lower. ($1 = 7.2451 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Amy Lv and Lewis Jackson; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Savio D’Souza)
