Dalian iron ore futures extended gains to a fifth session on Monday on tight supply of BHP’s Jimblebar and Jingbao fines, while firmer blast furnace hot metal production in China also lent support.
The most-traded May iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) DCIOcv1 gained 0.58% to 781.5 yuan($111.01) a metric ton.
The benchmark January iron ore SZZFF6 on the Singapore Exchange was 0.05% lower at $104.65 a ton, as of 0710 GMT.
Prices rose further on restricted supply of BHP’s (ASX: BHP) Jimblebar and Jingbao fines, leaving most Chinese mills represented by state-owned China Mineral Resources Group with little option but to procure larger volumes of Rio Tinto’s (ASX: RIO) Pilbara fines, said Atilla Widnell, managing director at Navigate Commodities in Singapore.
Pilbara fines are a core component of the underlying iron ore index that futures are benchmarked against, dragging the whole complex higher, Widnell said.
In China, hot metal production, a gauge of iron ore demand, has increased since mid-September 2025, data from Navigate Commodities showed.
Steel mill profitability has recovered gradually, with some mills resuming production, said Chinese broker Everbright Futures.
Elevated iron ore prices in recent years have accelerated global investment in new mining capacity, pushing the global iron ore market into a decisive phase of supply expansion, said consultancy Mysteel.
Total iron ore stockpiles across ports in China climbed 1.19% week-on-week to about 145.5 million tons, as of December 19, according to SteelHome data.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the DCE gained ground, with coking coal DJMcv1 and coke DCJcv1 up 0.36% and 0.78%, respectively.
Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange climbed. Rebar SRBcv1 rose 0.39%, hot-rolled coil SHHCcv1 gained 0.28%, wire rod SWRcv1 strengthened 2.94% and stainless steel SHSScv1 firmed 1.82%.
($1 = 7.0400 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Lucas Liew; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
