Canada's iron ore exports jump 23% year-on-year in Aug '16

TORONTO (Scrap Monster): The latest trade data released by Statistics Canada suggests considerable jump in iron ore export volumes during the month of August this year. The country’s iron ore exports totaled 4.27 million tons during the month, significantly higher by 23.4% when matched with the same month a year before. The Canadian exports of the steel making raw material had totaled 3.46 million tons in August 2015.

The largest importer of Canadian iron ore during August this year was China. The exports to China totaled 1.717 million tons, accounting for nearly four-tenth of the total exports by Canada during the month. The other primary export destinations were Japan (501,000 tons), the UAE (368,000 tons) and Belgium (326,000 tons).

The cumulative exports during the initial eight months of the year totaled 27.22 million tons. The exports during this period were up by 13.5% when compared with the corresponding period last year. The country’s exports during Jan-Aug ’15 had totaled 23.98 million tons.

Exports-July ’16

Canada exported 3.413 million tons of iron ore in July this year. The exports surged higher by 16.3% when matched with the imports during same month the previous year. The exports had totaled 2.935 million tons during July 2015. The exports to the Netherlands totaled 607,500 tons during the month. China imported 360,824 tons of iron ore from Canada.

Exports-June ’16

Canada’s iron ore exports totaled 3.392 million tons in June this year. The exports declined by over 6% when matched with the exports of 3.613 Mt during the same month a year before. Out of this, Quebec accounted for 1.972 Mt of exports, followed by Newfoundland and Labrador with 1.420 Mt and Ontario with 82 Mt. The value of exports totaled $260.687 million. The exports averaged at $76.9 per tonne.

Exports-May ‘16

Canada exported 3.984 million tons of iron ore in May this year. The exports surged higher by 18.8% when matched with the imports during same month the previous year. The exports had totaled 3.352 million tons during May 2015. Out of this, concentrate exports totaled 2.341 million tons, while the balance 1.643 million tons accounted for pellet exports. The export prices witnessed marginal decline of almost 2% year-on-year to $70.1 per ton during the month.

Meantime, analysts consider the downfall in Chinese steel exports during the month of September as an early sign for decline in iron ore prices going forward. The country’s steel exports had declined by nearly 3% during the month to 7.7 million tonnes. Also, exports during the month hit the lowest level since February this year. The imposition of trade sanctions by various countries on imported Chinese steel is likely to curb steel making activity, which in turn may lead to lesser imports of the steel making raw material by China. The drop in Chinese demand may impact Canada’s iron ore export volume, since China accounts for major share of Canadian iron ore exports.

On the positive side, market experts expect the Chinese iron ore demand to jump higher by 5% to exceed 1 billion tons in 2017.

Incidentally, iron ore prices crossed US$57 per tonne Monday, adding to the gains during the previous week. However, the prices are still short of August high of $61.80 a tonne.