The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) traded 0.79% higher at 827.5 yuan ($113.24) a metric ton, as of 0214 GMT. The contract touched its highest level since December 10 at 830.5 yuan a ton earlier in the session.
The benchmark March iron ore on the Singapore Exchange was 0.35% higher at $107.55 a ton, as of 0211 GMT, the highest since October 10, 2024.
The operator of Australia’s iron ore export hub Port Hedland that is used by major producers BHP Group, Fortescue and billionaire Gina Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting had started clearing vessels from the port after a weather warning from the Bureau of Meteorology.
That came after top supplier Rio Tinto cleared ships from two Western Australian ports last week, which had contributed to a sharp fall in shipments during the period, said traders.
Gains, however, were curbed by the unrest stirred by Trump’s fresh tariff threats. Trump substantially raised tariffs on steel and aluminium imports on Monday to a flat 25% “without exceptions or exemptions” in a move to aid the struggling industries but which increases the risk of a multi-front trade war.
The tariffs will apply to millions of tons of steel and aluminium imports from Canada, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea and other countries that had been entering the US duty free under the carve-outs.
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