Iron ore is being battered. After rounds of warnings 2017’s rally may have been overdone, the raw material is in retreat as doubts gather about the strength of demand in China as steel sells off and record port stockpiles highlight rising supplies. SA’s Kumba Iron Ore traded more than 4% lower at about R203,60 a share for much of the day on Tuesday. Steel producer ArcelorMittal was 1.82% lower at R11.87 a share in late trade. In China, futures on the Dalian Commodity Exchange sank into a bear market as steel in Shanghai posted the longest run of declines in 2017, while the SGX AsiaClear contract in Singapore fell for a fourth day. Benchmark spot prices from Metal Bulletin extended a loss below $90 a tonne to the lowest since February 9. "Steel demand in China is clearly robust, but iron-ore prices remain very elevated versus fundamentals, and it is only a matter of time before they normalise to below $60," said Ian Roper, an analyst at Macquarie Group. "We have had a negative view o...
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