China's iron ore imports in November fell 1.91% from October, customs data showed on Tuesday, as shipments slowed during a typically slow season for steel demand when colder weather disrupts construction work in the north of the country.
The world's largest iron ore consumer imported 101.86 million metric tons of the steelmaking ingredient last month, data from the country's General Administration of Customs showed. This was down from 103.84 million tons in October and lower than the 102.74 million tons in November 2023.
"The trend is in line with our expectations as pressure on miners to lift shipments to achieve annual targets has eased after a wave of high shipments earlier this year," said Pei Hao, a Shanghai-based analyst at international brokerage Freight Investor Services (FIS).
"Ore demand did pick up last month, but that was mainly reflected in the drawdown in portside inventory."
Portside stocks fell 0.4% during November to stand at 148.5 million tons late in the month, data from consultancy Steelhome showed.
In the first 11 months of 2024, China's iron ore imports climbed 4.3% from the year before to 1.124 billion tons, the data showed.
