WEEKLY: China's iron ore port stocks inch higher ahead of holiday

Inventories of imported iron ore at China's 47 major ports under Mysteel's tracking increased by another 206,600 tonnes or 0.1% on week to reach 173.11 million tonnes as of June 18, the last working day before China's three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, according to the latest survey results.

The 0.1% increase – albeit small - marked the fourth consecutive week of accumulation, and the tonnage of current port-side stocks remained 19.9% higher than the year-ago level, indicating a persistent surplus of this key steelmaking ingredient in the spot market. The 47 sampled ports saw higher iron ore outflows