SHANGHAI, Apr 28 (SMM) – The premiums of pellets and lumps both fell this week. This is because intensive blast furnace maintenance by steel mills in Shanxi, Shaanxi and Sichuan hurt the demand for iron ore.
After five rounds of coke price cuts, some steel mills have raised the share of lumps used in their pig iron production. However, in view of weakening end demand and poor profitability of steel mills, the demand for lumps and pellets will hardly grow. Iron ore prices are expected to go down after the Labour Day holiday, which will drag down the premiums of lumps and pellets.
