Iron ore futures retreated on Tuesday as investors booked profits after focus shifted back to expectations of growing ore supply in the rest of 2025, while steel demand in top consumer China seasonally slows.

The most-traded January iron ore contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange (DCE) fell 2.07% to end daytime trade at 782 yuan ($109.55) a metric ton.

It hit its highest since September 23 at 809.5 yuan earlier in the session.

The benchmark November iron ore (SZZFX5) on the Singapore Exchange declined 2.5% to $105.1 a ton, as of 0707 GMT, after touching its highest level since February 25 at $108.05 earlier.

The world’s largest iron ore supplier Rio Tinto RIO, RIO said on Tuesday it needs a strong year-end finish to meet its iron ore shipment target.

The price rally late on Monday was driven by an overreaction to the potential increase in ore transportation costs amid the port fees which in reality will have very limited impact, said Chu Xinli, an analyst at broker China Futures.

“Therefore, it needs to be repriced today, which partly contributed to a downward correction.”

The United States and China on Tuesday will begin charging port fees on ocean shipping firms that move everything from holiday toys to crude oil, making the high seas a key front in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.

Looming headwinds of rising supply and weak demand propelled investors to liquidate some long positions to cash in profits, triggering a price collapse, said analysts.

Coking coal NYMEX:ACT1! and coke (DCJcv1), other steelmaking ingredients, increased by 0.74% and 0.36%, respectively.

Steel benchmarks on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly lower. Rebar RBF1! shed 0.81%, hot-rolled coil EHR1! dipped 0.7%, wire rod (SWRcv1) lost 0.33%, and stainless steel HRC1! eased 0.95%.
Source: Reuters