Iron ore falls for fifth session on weak China steel demand
Iron ore falls for fifth session on weak China steel demand Updates prices to market close
By Ruth Chai
SINGAPORE, June 9 (Reuters) - Iron ore futures fell for the fifth straight session on Tuesday amid seasonally weak steel demand in China, while coking coal and coke prices slumped as more coal mines reopened after safety inspections following a fatal mine accident in May.
The most-traded September iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) DCIOcv1 closed daytime trade 0.2% lower at 760 yuan ($112.22) a metric ton, hovering close to two-month low prices.
The benchmark July iron ore SZZFN6 on the Singapore Exchange was 0.52% higher at $100.7 a ton as of 0708 GMT.
Though iron ore shipments continue to rise, a decline in port pick-up volume reflects slowing demand from steel mills, a note from Shanghai Metals Market said.
Seasonally weak steel demand from the world's largest steel consumer is forecasted to suppress iron ore prices in the short term, further exacerbated by compressed steel margins amid higher coking coal and coke costs, said analysts at ING.
China's car sales dropped 22.3% from a year earlier to 1.53 million vehicles last month, marking an eighth consecutive month of decline, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed on Monday.
The manufacturing industry in China has become a major consumer of steel, absorbing supply that the country's property sector used to take up.
In 2025, manufacturing accounted for around 53% of China's overall steel usage, while the construction sector represented 36%, according to consultancy Mysteel.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE fell sharply, with coking coal DJMcv1 and coke DCJcv1 sliding 6.66% and 3.99%, respectively.
More than half the mines that shut down after the fatal accident in Shanxi's Liushenyu mine, which killed at least 82 people, have resumed operations as of June 8, a note from Mysteel said.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange mostly fell. Rebar SRBcv1 fell 0.19%, hot-rolled coil SHHCcv1 shed 0.59%, and stainless steel SHSScv1 declined 1.09%. Meanwhile, wire rod SWRcv1 gained 0.15%.
($1 = 6.7724 yuan)
(Reporting by Ruth Chai; Editing by Eileen Soreng and Ronojoy Mazumdar)
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