The price of 62% Fe grade iron ore fines from Australia shipped to China rose by US$0.95 to US$104.25/ton yesterday (January 22), ending a seven-day decline. This recovery was driven by new investment plans from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology targeting energy networks and high-end equipment. These policies improved market sentiment, causing a rise in Chinese ferrous futures and stabilizing spot steel prices.

Before this turnaround, the iron ore price had dropped by 5.5% over seven days, hitting a two-month low. Despite the recent growth, market participants remain cautious as daily molten iron production has slowed to 2.8 million tons. With rising port inventories and weak seasonal demand, it was expected that iron ore would continue to experience price volatility in the near term.