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WA iron ore exports hit highest since June

  • : Freight, Metals
  • 24/12/30

Combined iron ore exports from four of the largest producers in Western Australia (WA) were 13pc higher than the 12-month rolling weekly average in the week to 28 December, as the four producers ramped up loadings before the end of the year.

Iron ore producers BHP, Fortescue, Roy Hill and Rio Tinto loaded vessels with a combined capacity of 19.76mn deadweight tonnes (dwt) over 22-28 December, up from 17.29mn dwt in the week to 21 December. The deadweight volume is the maximum capacity of a vessel and typically overestimates shipments by about 5pc.

Exports were at their highest since the week to 29 June and exceeded the 12-month rolling average of 17.46mn dwt.

Rio Tinto's shipments remained high at 7.57mn dwt over the week. This was slightly higher than the firm's shipments in the previous week, far above its 12-month weekly average of 6.49mn dwt, and marked its highest weekly shipments since early November.

BHP loadings surged to 6.61mn dwt over the period, up from 4.9mn dwt a week earlier and much above its 5.95mn dwt 12-month weekly average.

Fortescue's loadings jumped to 4.54mn dwt from 3.86mn dwt a week earlier, well above its 3.8mn dwt 12-month average.

Roy Hill's exports rebounded to 1.05mn dwt from 982,862dwt during the week to 21 December, after collapsing to zero three weeks earlier. This may indicate that the company has finished its seasonal maintenance and has restarted loadings. But shipments were still significantly below the firm's 12-month weekly average of 1.22mn dwt.

Spot freight rates in the Pacific remained low in late December as iron ore demand slowed. Capesize rates on the key west Australia-north China route for cargoes loading from mid-January were at their lowest since February 2023, at $6.15/t on 27 December, falling from a recent high of $10.75/t on 26 November.

Overall iron ore shipments from the four main west Australia ports — Hedland, Walcott, Dampier and Onslow — edged higher to 73.71mn dwt on 1-28 December from 73.5mn dwt a year earlier, provisional shipping data indicate. Shipments to China — where most cargoes are shipped to — rose to 63.69mn dwt from 60.56mn dwt a year earlier. But exports to Japan and South Korea dropped from 9.73mn dwt over 1-28 December 2023 to 6.78mn dwt over the period this year. Shipments to the two countries were lower for most of December but companies loaded additional cargoes in the last full week of the month in order to conclude the sales before the end of the year.

If iron ore producers maintain the pace of exports seen over 22-28 December during the last three days of the month, they could load an additional 8.7mn dwt before the end of the year. Total western Australian iron ore exports for 2024 could then reach around 942.1mn dwt, a 2.2pc increase from the 921.6mn dwt exported in 2023. Rio Tinto's full-year exports could be 0.6pc lower on the year, at around 340.7mn dwt, according to preliminary shipping data. And BHP's shipments could increase by 4.2pc to 312.1mn dwt, while Fortescue's exports could rise by 2.8pc to 198.6mn dwt, preliminary shipping data indicate. Roy Hill's exports could decrease by 4.7pc on the year to 63.5mn dwt in 2024.

Total western Australian iron ore exports to China could increase by 3.1pc to 785.3mn dwt in 2024, preliminary shipping data show, reflecting increased steel exports and stocks in China. Shipments to South Korea could rise by 2.1pc to 53.7mn dwt in 2024, but shipments to Japan could fall by 6.7pc to 57.1mn dwt because of struggles in the country's automobile industry this year.

Iron ore producer MinRes began exports from its Onslow facility in May. All of the firm's 4.6mn dwt of exports have been shipped to China, as of 25 December.


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25/02/06

Quota liberalisation could be reversed for steel

Quota liberalisation could be reversed for steel

London, 6 February (Argus) — The liberalisation of hot-rolled coil (HRC) quotas since 2018 could be reversed in the European Commission's functional safeguard review, according to market sources. This alone would lead to a volume cut of about 15pc since the quotas were introduced. European producers' association Eurofer has requested a 50pc cut in flat product quota volumes, to align import share with 2012-14, when it says apparent consumption was last in line with current levels. Eurofer estimates import share on flat products at nearly 28pc this year compared with an average share of just over 16pc in 2012-14. Eurofer removes HRC destined for internal processing into cold-rolled coil and hot-dip galvanised coil from its calculation of overall market supply. Including HRC for internal processing, import share has risen from just below 6pc since 2012-14 to more than 14pc, according to Argus calculations. The average HRC import rate over 2012-14 was 4.73mn t/yr, which is about 85pc lower than the 8.8mn t likely to be imported in 2024 — this assumes imports of about 300,000t in December 2024, calculated from a quota drawdown during the period with some additional material from countries exempt from the safeguard on HRC. Sources suggest there cannot be a wholesale cut in quota volumes that is compatible with WTO rules, but that the repeal of liberalisation and some other fine-tuning measures could add up to a meaningful revision. The proposal to reduce the 'other countries' cap to 7.5pc from the current 15pc would effectively halve potential volumes from sellers within that quota, such as Japan, Vietnam and Egypt. Removing carryover of unused quota and including previously exempt countries into the quota would also have an impact. Imports could potentially be capped at a certain share of overall supply, some said, although it is not clear how this could be administered. The commission has received significant feedback from the buy side of the market, given the substantial reduction sought by Eurofer and its potential impact. Some buyers suggest 2017 or 2018 could be a more accurate point of reference than 2012-14. During this period, imports have risen by almost 32pc from 6.6mn t, while market supply has contracted by about 28pc, led by domestic output dropping by almost a quarter. By Colin Richardson Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Japan’s Honda, Nissan mull scrapping merger plan


25/02/06
25/02/06

Japan’s Honda, Nissan mull scrapping merger plan

Tokyo, 6 February (Argus) — Japanese car maker Honda and Nissan are considering ending merger talks, a representative of Honda told Argus today. Ending negotiations for proposed merger is among the issues the two firms are discussing, Honda's representative told Argus on 6 February, without providing further details. Honda will make an official announcement regarding the deal, including its course of action, in mid-February, according to statements released by the firm on 5 February. Nissan similarly commented that the firms are "in the stage of advancing various discussions", according to a statement the company separately released on 5 February. This includes "the contents of the report", the statement said, referring to the local news story about a possible withdrawal from the basic merger agreement with Honda. Nissan reiterated that the report is not based on any official announcement from the company. This comes only several weeks after the firms launched formal merger negotiations in late December 2024. This included setting up a joint holding company under which the current brands would operate as subsidiaries. The merger plan was partly aimed at jointly developing electric vehicles (EVs) along with studying possible areas of co-operation in developing automotive software platforms, core components relating to EVs and complementary products. Tough negotiation was anticipated from the beginning partly because of Nissan's financial struggles. Honda had suggested the merger plan could be scrapped depending on Nissan's turnaround, reiterating that the proposed merger is not aimed at alleviating Nissan's financial situation. By Yusuke Maekawa Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US met coal market mixed on China tariffs


25/02/05
25/02/05

US met coal market mixed on China tariffs

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Q&A: Africa's role in the EV revolution


25/02/05
25/02/05

Q&A: Africa's role in the EV revolution

London, 5 February (Argus) — The African continent plays a vital role as a supplier of raw materials essential for electric vehicles (EVs), but what about the downstream? Argus spoke with Dave Coffey, chief executive of the African Association of Automotive Manufacturing(AAAM), at the sidelines of the Indaba Mining Conference in Cape Town, South Africa about Africa's EV ambitions. Which African countries are ready for EV adoption? We see demand for motorcycles and public transport today, and east Africa is leading that market. The passenger car will take much longer because of affordability issues. Today, we are struggling to increase the sale of internal combustion engines (ICE) and transitioning to electric vehicles will not happen quickly. Instead, you are likely to see an increase in three-wheelers or even four-wheeled micro-mobility options, while passenger cars will lag. Also, countries will transition at different speeds depending on their natural resources. Some countries have gas, CNG, and they're pushing to convert vehicles to piped natural gas (PNG). Others are pushing for green hydrogen. You're going to see different journeys on the transition to electric mobility. And if you just look at India and China — I often use India as a benchmark for Africa because of its similar population — they are exploring all different types of powertrains, and Africa will be likely to follow suit, moving at various speeds. Which countries are better positioned in the EV supply chain? South Africa clearly has the greatest demand on the continent today. If you look forward, say, 10 years, Egypt will have strong demand. Egypt will come through and can produce 500,000 vehicles in the next decade for its own consumption. Algeria is also taking off. Its industry was closed for a number of years owing to corruption issues. Algeria could get to 400,000 vehicles. Morocco will get to 220,000 vehicles for its own use, not for exports. Tunisia will probably be at 80,000 cars. In sub-Saharan Africa, the Ivory Coast may see demand for 80,000 to 90,000 vehicles. We are investing significant effort into driving demand in sub-Saharan Africa because of the vast opportunities present there. However, it is essential to provide affordable mobility solutions to reduce the reliance on used vehicle imports. What are the main challenges apart from affordability? It's the political will to implement the industrial policy, because how do you switch over and cut off used vehicles? You can't industrialise and hope people will buy when they can't afford to buy. The big issue is access to affordable finance. It's a big issue that we're working on in Africa. Imagine if you have a new vehicle that becomes a used vehicle and attracts vehicle finance. It'll compete with the used cars coming in. Financing is a critical issue, both from a consumer perspective and an investment perspective. You're getting component manufacturers wanting to invest. It's not a big ticket out of $10mn. It might be $2mn, and they're not able to access capital. Finance all around is a big development drive in Africa. Are there any logistical problems delaying EV adoption? My view on logistics is that, for example, people say we can't ship between one country. We've already seen, and I've got examples, that when the volume picks up, it just gets sold. It does. Because then you've got shipping lines that will put on the shipping routes. Yes, Africa does face logistics challenges, particularly the lack of rail infrastructure. However, consider this: currently, intra-Africa trade is only at 17pc. Imagine if that figure increased to 50pc. We would need a significant number of commercial vehicles to support that growth. Commercial cars have a huge future for Africa as a result of the intra-Africa trade we're trying to drive. Creating demand drives the value chain and the entire ecosystem. We need to generate demand. By Cristina Belda Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

EU maritime emissions continue to rise: EMSA


25/02/04
25/02/04

EU maritime emissions continue to rise: EMSA

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