Iron ore futures in China fell on February 10, as a rising death toll from the coronavirus outbreak dimmed demand prospects for the steelmaking raw material, and as stocks piled up at the country's ports amid industry shutdowns.
The Dalian Commodity Exchange's most-traded iron ore contract, expiring in May, ended the session down 0.7% at 581.50 yuan/t ($83.30/t). It tumbled 11% last week, marking its biggest weekly loss in six months.
On the Singapore Exchange, the front-month March iron ore contract dropped 1.2% to $79.65/t in afternoon trade.
Spot iron ore prices also sank last week, with the benchmark 62% grade for delivery to China shedding 14.3% to $83/t.
The epidemic has caused huge disruptions in the world's second-largest economy, with the country's usually bustling cities becoming ghost towns as authorities ordered virtual lockdowns, cancelled flights, and shut factories and schools.
However, workers began trickling back to offices and factories around China on February 10 as the government eased some restrictions on work and travel.
Amid weak demand and with many ports in China remaining shut after the extended Lunar New Year holidays, iron ore port inventory rose to 131.1 million tonnes last week, the highest since early November 2019, data showed.
The demand for steel products will likely slow down at the start of spring in China in March, instead of picking up as seasonally expected.
Construction steel rebar on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was down 0.1%, while hot-rolled steel coil was virtually flat.
Coking coal slipped 0.3% while coke gained 0.6%.
(Writing by Tian Zhang Editing by Tammy Yang)
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