Iron ore futures climbed back above $200 a ton as soaring steel production in China showed there’s no sign of the industry cooling despite government attempts to rein in output from last year’s record of over 1 billion tons.
Crude steel output in April rose to 97.9 million tons to hit monthly and daily run-rate records. The robust pace of production also lifted the year-to-date tally to 375 million tons, a 16% jump compared to same period last year. This comes as iron ore stockpiles at Chinese ports declined for the third week, indicating strength in demand.
