Steel production will still grow Iron ore is expected to recover

As the world’s largest mining company, BHP Billiton’s expectations for China’s demand have remained relatively optimistic. BHP Billiton Chief Executive Gao Ruisi said on the 17th that although it is lower than the average annual growth rate of about 10% in the past decade, it is clear that there are still important opportunities in the Chinese economy. He expects China's economic growth rate this year to be about 7% to 8%, and as the economic growth model shifts towards consumption, China's economic growth rate can maintain this level in the next decade.

China is the world’s largest metal-based consumer country and is BHP Billiton’s largest customer. Earlier, concerns about the slowdown in China's economic growth and the demineralization of iron ore have caused global iron ore prices to soar, and the prospects for mining companies are bleak. However, with the expectation of a bottoming out of the Chinese economy, the mining companies began to expect that the Chinese factor will again become a major factor in boosting the iron ore market.

BHP Billiton (BHP) announced its quarterly operating report on the 17th, saying that in the company's first fiscal quarter ending the end of September, the company’s iron ore output rose slightly by 1% year-on-year to 39.77 million tons, a 3% drop from the previous quarter, and the output was in line with the market. It is widely expected. On the previous day, Rio Tinto, another mining giant, announced that its iron ore production in the third quarter of this year increased by 5% to 67 million tons, which was higher than market expectations. Both companies maintain their annual iron ore output unchanged.

Rio Tinto, the world’s second-largest iron ore producer, which announced its quarterly operating report on the 16th, announced that it expects to achieve the production target of 250 million tons of iron ore this year, and Rio Tinto also predicts that China’s steel production will continue to increase in the next 15 years. There is about 40% growth. The company’s chief executive officer, Aibo Nian, said: “We hope to seize the opportunity of the next recovery cycle.”

Australia's other miner Fortescue Metals Group Co., Ltd. (FMG) said on the 16th that China’s future infrastructure investment will boost its iron ore demand forecast, or it will push iron ore prices to their highest level since July this year. On the same day, FMG also stated that it maintains its annual production target of 82 to 84 million tons.