According to statistics released by the General Administration of Customs of China on the 8th, iron ore imports in August rose 0.4% month-on-month to 108.54 million tons, defying analyst expectations of a decline. The increase was attributed to delays in customs clearance caused by multiple typhoons in July that hampered port unloading. Year-on-year, imports rose 3.1%. Steven Yu, senior analyst at consulting firm Mysteel, said, "This exceeded our expectations. We had forecast a decline of up to 5 million tons for August." He also noted that some cargoes that arrived in July may have only cleared customs in August. From January to August, imports totaled 845.27 million tons, up 5.5% year-on-year. Meanwhile, steel exports in August rose 0.4% month-on-month and 6.8% year-on-year to 10.16 million tons, exceeding 10 million tons for the fourth consecutive month. From January to August, steel exports totaled 75.15 million tons, down 3% year-on-year.
China's iron ore imports unexpectedly rose in August, indicating stronger demand.
