China's iron ore futures edged higher on March 25 as market expects strong demand at steel mills after winter production curbs are lifted by the end of this month.
Steel makers in smog-prone northern regions were ordered to trim output by as much as 50% over November-March to reduce toxic emissions and improve air quality.
Some cities have already removed the restrictions, and more are expected to lift by the end of this week.
Utilization rates at steel mills across the country climbed 1.1 percentage points to 63.4% in the week to March 22, snapping two weeks of decline, data showed.
Meanwhile, the world's No.2 iron ore miner Rio Tinto said on March 24 that it was suspending rail operations in the Pilbara regions and mining at the Robe Valley operations in Western Australia due to a severe tropical cyclone.
That intensified the concerns of tight iron ore supply from Australia as Rio Tinto and other major miners, BHP and Fortescue, last week cleared their ships from ports.
The most-traded iron ore futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose 0.2% to 613 yuan/t ($91.26/t).
Prices of benchmark Shanghai rebar contract fell 0.9% to 3,728 yuan/t, as market worried about abundant supply amid climbing utilization rates.
Hot-rolled coil, a flat-steel product mainly used in manufacturing sectors, dipped 0.2% to 3,693 yuan/t.
Other steel-making raw materials also fell on March 25, as steel mills intended to reduce production costs.
Coking coal contract for May delivery lost 0.2% to 1,239 yuan/t, while coke futures slid 0.1% to 1,977 yuan/t.
Source:sxcoal
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