Find below the iron ore complex price table for January 30, 2013:
And the chart:
12 month swaps broke out to a new high, just, and not yet decisive.
The ANZ view, however, is for short term weakness:
Despite a 6% fall iron ore prices in the past three weeks, we think the ensuing Chinese holiday break is likely to put further downward pressure on seaborne prices over the next few weeks. The recent Queensland floods could also convince traders to short iron ore, to offset any margin loss by steel mills from a spike in coking coal prices. We think prices should trend down to USD140/t CIF China by the end of the first quarter – still a palatable outcome for both consumers and suppliers.
The sharp drop in Baltic Capesize freight rates in December (down 45% over the month) flags a substantial drop in Chinese iron ore imports in January after record high levels in December. We also hear that steel mills have built steel yard iron ore stockpiles up to around 32 days of cover, from 26 days in November. An ample level of cover in the Chinese steel industry is seen around 30 days.
We also hear that steel mills are buying a higher level of cheaper domestic iron ore, with the ratio use increasing to 84/16 from 80/20 (domestic/imported ore) in the past month. Reports that the Chinese steel industry operated at a -0.18% EBIT margin for 2012 doesn’t surprise us that participants are chasing cheaper raw material supply.
On a price-supporting side, iron ore port stocks continue to fall. Chinese inventories at major iron ore ports now sit at 69.3 million tonnes, down from a high of 96 million tonnes in early September last year. That said, the stockpile declines last year look like inventory rebuilding by steel mills, while the falls in the past month look more likely to be associated with lower importing activity – suggesting that the tighter supply backdrop is not necessarily indicative of better prices.
It appears trading is already starting to wind-down for the Chinese lunar New Year (in a weeks time).
The recent pick-up in prices looks like last minute inventory adjustments, rather than a start of a rebound. That said, we remain upbeat on the outlook for iron ore from the second quarter, as further government stimulus and improving economic data confirms a better China growth outcome. We think spot prices will ultimately trade range-bound between USD130-150/t for 2013.
Recent history is on ANZ’s side. Chinese New Year falls can be quite large:
But I caution against watching the Baltic Dry. It’s unreliable these days. Full report below.
