WEEKLY SUMMARY: China's iron ore prices strengthen, spot coke stable

Imported iron ore prices in China increased across both spot and futures markets during August 10-14, supported by improving steelmaker profitability and a rebound in production activity, which bolstered market confidence. Over the same period, spot metallurgical coke prices in the domestic market remained largely flat, while coke futures posted gains, signaling increasing expectations of a potential price increase ahead.

Operations among Chinese blast-furnace (BF) steelmakers continued to rise – albeit marginally – during the past week, as more idled furnaces were brought back onstream. During August 7-13, the average capacity utilization rate among the 247 BF steel producers under Mysteel's tracking inched up 0.06 percentage point on week