Iron Imports Up in First 4 Months  
  

China spent 85.7 billion yuan more on imports of iron ore during the first four months of 2011 than it did during the same period of 2010, reports Shanghai Securities News, citing the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA).

The figure is 2.6 times more than the profits of the country's steel makers.

The average per-ton import price was US$ 157.6 in the first four months, marking an increase of 57 percent from the same period one year ago. Based on an import volume of 230 million tons, China's steel makers spent US$ 13.2 billion to buy them. For the period, mid-sized and large steel makers realized 32.98 billion yuan in net profits, a 2.12 percent year-on-year drop.

The major reference indices are Steel Business Briefing's TSI Index, Metal Bulletin's MBIO index and Platts' index.


From   capitalvue