The Chinese steel mill bought an undisclosed stake from Winning Consortium Simandou, which owns the two northern blocks of the project.

Dinson Iron and Steel Company will produce 600,000 metric tons of carbon steel annually.

An activist shareholder group said the potential addition of U.S. Steel's 11 blast furnaces to Nippon Steel's operations will almost certainly increase the company's cost of decarbonization.

Shares of the world's fourth-largest iron ore miner have fallen nearly 25% so far this year.

Last week, Vale and BHP presented Brazilian authorities with a new offer to settle reparations.

It's a case of one step forward, two steps back for China's steel and iron ore sectors.

Mexico's steel chamber said the work stoppage had a ripple effect throughout the region, as well as on supply chains in Mexico and the US.

"The structural trends suggest that the market is going to see more subdued performance rather than substantial recovery," analyst says.