Iron ore plunges as China demand outlook darkens

July 4 (Reuters) - Dalian iron ore futures tumbled more than 6% on Monday, while the steelmaking ingredient dropped below $110 in Singapore, weighed by a gloomy outlook for demand in China, where many steel mills are nursing losses and cutting production.

The most-traded September iron ore contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange DCIOcv1 fell as much as 6.3% to 716 yuan ($106.98) a tonne, extending its losses to a third session, and touching its lowest since June 23.

On the Singapore Exchange SZZFQ2, iron ore's front-month August contract slumped up to 5% to $108.85 a tonne, the weakest level since June 23.

Mills in top steel producer China have idled dozens of blast furnaces as stocks piled up after domestic demand weakened, hit by COVID-19 lockdowns and bad weather.