On May 8, 2026, iron ore futures experienced oscillating movements in the morning session before edging lower in the afternoon. The main contract I2609 closed at 814.5 yuan/ton, down 0.06% from the previous trading session. Port spot prices remained largely flat compared to the day before. Traders showed limited enthusiasm for quoting, while most steel mills adopted a wait-and-see approach, with purchases driven mainly by immediate needs. Overall, spot market transaction sentiment was moderate. Recently, iron ore inventories have continued to decline, but the pace of destocking has slowed after the holiday as steel mills’ purchasing intentions weakened. According to the latest data from SMM, iron ore inventory across 35 major ports totaled 14.985 million tons, down 23,000 tons from the previous period, indicating a slight inventory drawdown. During the same period, average daily port oŏake volumes edged down by 40,000 tons to 3.265 million tons. With shipments from Australia and Brazil picking up, the supply side of iron ore may re-enter an inventory accumulation phase. Going forward, attention should remain on the pace of steel mill production cuts and the recovery of end-user demand. In the short term, iron ore prices may experience a modest decline but are expected to exhibit a high-range fluctuating trend overall.

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Source: Metals Market Index (MMI)