Iron ore futures slide as weak Chinese steel demand and supply disruptions weigh

Iron ore futures fell on July 20 and 21 as seasonal weakness in Chinese steel demand and lower furnace utilisation pressured prices. On July 20, the September contract on the Dalian exchange dropped 0.39% to 758 yuan per tonne and the August reference on the Singapore exchange slipped 0.15% to $100.05. Persistent rain in southern China, hot weather in the north and a geological‑disaster alert reduced construction activity, while Fortescue’s low‑grade “Super Special Fines” inventories fell 16.5% to a four‑month low.

On July 21 the decline accelerated, with the September Dalian contract down 1.12% to 749 yuan and the August Singapore reference down 1.02% to $98.6. The fall was accompanied by steeper drops in metallurgical coal and coke prices as cargo arrivals recovered after the typhoon Bavi congestion, adding roughly 7.98 million tonnes of iron ore to Chinese ports and expanding inventories. Major Australian miners BHP and Fortescue raised their FY2027 shipment forecasts, and output from West Africa’s Simandou project in Guinea continued to increase.