Iron ore market sentiment in China is mixed as new pricing system is announced

Macquarie Commodities reports that on the morning of the first day of the Metal Bulletin iron ore conference in Beijing “news broke that various Asian steel mills had reached agreement with Vale on iron ore prices for the April-June quarter. This led some delegates to call the end of the recent spot market iron ore rally, as the bullish news flow speculating on possible contract settlements would dry up. However, this was not the universal view, with many believing the strength of steel demand would support continued raw material and steel price rises.” (more…)