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Iron ore futures climbed more than 3% on Tuesday as Beijing was seen preparing an additional sovereign debt issuance as part of efforts to spur economic growth, while worries persisted about a deepening crisis in China’s property sector.
The most-traded January iron ore on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange ended daytime trade 3.8% higher at 864.50 yuan ($118.34) per metric ton, after a three-session slump.
On the Singapore Exchange, the benchmark November contract was up 3.1% at $116.25 per ton, as of 0718 GMT.
China is set to unleash fresh fiscal stimulus to shore up its economic recovery, with some government advisers recommending a higher 2024 budget deficit target to allow Beijing to issue more bonds to revive the economy.
China is set to approve slightly more than 1 trillion yuan ($137 billion) in additional sovereign debt issuance on Tuesday as it steps up efforts to spur infrastructure spending, three sources told Reuters.
“We expect the situation in China’s property market will stabilise in the latter part of the year and China’s steel demand will record slight positive growth thanks to government measures,” said Máximo Vedoya, chairman of the World Steel Association’s economic committee, in the Brussels-based group’s latest outlook issued on Oct. 17.
Other steelmaking ingredients on the Dalian exchange also rallied, with coking coal DJMcv1 and coke DCJcv1 up 2.7% and 2%, respectively.
Chinese steel benchmarks also rebounded, with both rebar SRBcv1 and hot-rolled coil SHHCcv1 up by 1.3%, wire rod SWRcv1 by 0.5%, and stainless steel SHSScv1 by 1%.
Moody’s, however, warned on Tuesday that weak fundamentals would further weigh on Chinese developers’ credit quality over the next 12 to 18 months.
Further clouding the demand outlook for iron ore, industry officials say steel supply in China will need to be adjusted in the coming months to match a seasonal drop in demand.