Cranes unload imported iron ore at the Lianyungang Port in East China's Jiangsu Province. Photo: VCG
China's top economic planner said on Monday that it will strengthen daily supervision of spot and futures markets for iron ore to stabilize market prices in view of recent price hikes.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation recently visited the Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) to carry out a joint investigation, said the NDRC on Monday.
The NDRC said it is highly concerned about price changes in the iron ore market. It will conduct in-depth investigations, strengthen supervision, severely crack down on illegal activities such as spreading false information, price gouging and speculation, and study other effective measures to ensure the smooth operation of iron ore market.
Domestic inventories are at a multi-year high. Analysts said that since the supply-demand balance is stable, there must be speculation behind the sharp price hike of iron ore.
On February 17, the NDRC investigated iron ore stocks at Qingdao Port in East China's Shandong Province. It then asked iron ore trading enterprises to release excessive stocks and restore them to a reasonable level as soon as possible. The NDRC said it will check whether illegal activities such as hoarding and price gouging are taking place.
