Iron-ore advances after record China imports boost demand hopes

Futures gained for the fourth day in Singapore, and were up more than 4% since Thursday’s close. Prices have rebounded from a rocky start to the year, when traders were cautious about demand in China and awaited further stimulus, which was signaled by Beijing last week.

Sentiment got a boost from customs data released Monday that showed the world’s largest consumer of iron-ore brought in a record 1.24-billion tons last year. At the same time, China’s increasing imports has seen stockpiles accumulate, with port-side stocks at 14.66-million tons as of January 10, up from 12-million tons in the same period last year.

Meanwhile, China’s trade surplus reached a record $992-billion in 2024. Annual steel shipments from the nation were the highest since 2015, at 110.7 million tons. However, increasing global trade tensions — including potential new tariffs under President-elect Donald Trump — may hinder such exports later this year.