WEEKLY SUMMARY: China's steel raw mat markets largely stable during CNY holiday

China's spot markets of major steelmaking raw materials including iron ore and metallurgical coke were muted during the nine-day Chinese New Year (CNY) holiday over February 15-23, as most participants left the market to spend the holiday. Yet, iron ore prices in the seaborne market weakened slightly due to reduced trading activities.

Iron ore: Mysteel SEADEX 62% Australian Fines dropped over the holiday to $97.85/dmt CFR Qingdao by February 23, down $0.65/dmt from the pre-holiday level. During the holiday, most Chinese steelmakers maintained stable blast furnace (BF) operations and relied on in-plant ore stocks for production without fresh replenishment. Therefore, active restocking among