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China likely to import more iron ore from Vale

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: China Daily   Date: February 15, 2015

Iron ore being unloaded at Rizhao Port, Shandong province. [Photo provided to China Daily]

New rules to facilitate entry of bulk carriers at the nation`s ports

China is likely to import more iron ore from Companhia Vale do Rio Doce, the Brazilian mining giant, to bolster its raw material reserves, after the Ministry of Transport issued a new rule permitting construction of wharves that can berth bulk carriers with a capacity of 400,000 deadweight tons.

The new rule, announced last month, said it is necessary for Chinese ports to keep up to date with the trend of ships getting larger and maintaining safe operations. The ministry previously suggested allowing bulk carriers larger than 300,000 DWT to call at Chinese ports as long as safety can be guaranteed.

Dong Liwan, a professor at Shanghai Maritime University, said the designed limit for larger bulk carriers is 403,944 DWT under the new rule, which is quite close to the mega ore carriers operated by Vale, indicating China is willing to deepen cooperation with the Brazilian company in mining commodity trade, as well as in increasing its iron ore reserves.

Due to opposition from Chinese shipping companies and associations, the Ministry of Transport had barred mega-bulk carriers from the nation`s ports since 2011, on security concerns and on grounds that such vessels can lead to monopoly and unfair market competition after the first 400,000 DWT bulk vessel docked at the Dalian port in December 2011.

"With the prices of commodities such as iron ore, coal and cotton remaining sluggish in the global market, it is reasonable for China to import more mining materials as strategic reserves to support the country`s ongoing industrial boom," said Dong.

Li Xinchuang, executive deputy secretary-general at the Beijing-based China Iron and Steel Association, said China`s iron ore imports are set to pierce the 1 billion-metric-ton mark for the first time this year.

Li said China`s iron ore imports are expected to grow 7.1 percent this year, thanks to domestic supplies falling by around 70 million tons.

"Where China sources its iron ore from will become more concentrated this year," said Li. "The percentage of China`s iron ore imports from by Australia and Brazil will expand to more than 80 percent this year from 77 percent in 2014."

Eager to reduce the hostility from Chinese shipping companies, Vale signed strategic and freight agreements with China`s State-owned COSCO Group and with China Merchants Group in September, in a push to increase its presence in China.

Vale also signed a strategic agreement with Shandong Shipping Corp in 2013 to hand over four 400,000 DWT bulk vessels to its Chinese counterpart, indicating the Brazilian company eventually found the dock to call in Chinese ports through this deal.

As many mining companies are seeking ways to cast off the negative impact caused by low commodity prices in global markets, Vale also signed a $500 million iron ore freight agreement with Shandong Shipping to diversify its business in China.

"Besides Dalian and Lianyungang, the ports of Qingdao, Tianjin, Ningbo-Zhoushan, Zhanjiang and Caofeidian all have the infrastructure in place to accept mega bulk carriers straight away," said Chen Yingming, executive vice-president of Shanghai-based China Port and Harbors Association.

"Meizhouwan port also announced plans for the construction of a 400,000 DWT berth last year," said Chen. "Apparently, the previous restrictive situation is close to an end."

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

World gold demands fall 4% in 2014

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Shanghai Daily   Date: February 13, 2015

A decline in jewelry consumption more than offset the growth in demand for gold investment and central bank buying and led to a fall in global gold consumption, the World Gold Council said yesterday.

Gold consumption worldwide fell 4 percent last year from 2013 to 3,924 tons, the WGC said in a report.

But the year ended strong as demand in the fourth quarter rose 6 percent year on year to 987 tons, helped by demand for jewelry and central bank buying.

The WGC expects China`s gold consumption to rise to between 900 and 1,000 tons this year, with jewelry contributing about 70 percent of the volume.

"2014 was a year of stabilization in the gold market, with annual gold demand down by just 4 percent after the record-breaking buying seen in 2013," said Marcus Grubb, managing director, investment strategy at the WGC.

"It was a standout year for Indian jewelry, despite government restrictions on gold imports. Meanwhile Chinese gold demand returned to levels last seen in 2011 and 2012."

Jewelry remained the biggest source of demand ¡ª 2,153 tons ¡ª for gold last year. But demand "unsurprisingly" fell 10 percent compared with the previous year due to the price-driven demand surge for jewelry in 2013, the WGC said.

India had its strongest year for jewelry demand since the WGC records began in 1995, up 8 percent last year to 662 tons, driven by weddings and festival buying despite government curbs on gold imports for most of the year.

Chinese jewelry demand dimmed 33 percent year on year, but it still represented the second-best year for jewelry demand in China since the WGC records began.

Investment demand rose 2 percent to 905 tons in 2014 from 885 tons in 2013.

Central bank demand climbed 17 percent from a year earlier to 477 tons as gold remained a valuable reserve to hold.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Steel exports rise for record fifth month

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: China Daily USA   Date: February 12, 2015

Steel exports from China, the world`s largest producer, rose to a record for a fifth month as new tax rules for some shipments failed to slow sales.

The country shipped 10.29 million metric tons of steel products in January, a 52 percent rise from the same month of the previous year, according to data released by the customs administration in Beijing.

China`s outbound shipments surged 51 percent to a record 93.78 million tons in 2014 as producers sought overseas buyers while domestic construction slowed and the economy cooled.

The surging exports underscored the country`s record trade surplus last month caused by weakening domestic demand and plummeting commodity prices. Total imports fell by the most in five years amid a property downturn and a stall in manufacturing.

Steel shipments during this year are forecast to fall after the government canceled export-tax rebates for alloys that contain the chemical element boron as part of a drive to force the industry to consolidate.

"We expect exports to decline in February as the impact of the tax change filters through and as domestic crude steel production has fallen sharply in response to steel margins turning negative," Ivan Szpakowski, a Hong Kong-based commodity strategist at Citigroup Inc, wrote in a report on Monday. "Anecdotal reports are that exports were slower in late January and early February."

January shipments were stronger than expected because many supply contracts for the month were signed before the change and as mills and traders liquidated inventories, according to Szpakowski. February exports should decline while mills adjust production to export alternate products, he said.

Boron-alloyed steel accounted for more than 30 percent of last year`s shipments, according to Ian Roper, a commodity strategist at CLSA Ltd in Singapore.

China`s output grew at the slowest pace on record last year while steelmakers delayed cutting jobs and closing plants during the weakest year of economic expansion since 1990. The country`s output of 822.7 million tons was more than double that of the combined next four largest producers, Japan, the United States, India and South Korea, according to statistics from the World Steel Association.

Iron ore imports fell 9.5 percent from record in December to 78.57 million tons last month, the customs agency said.

The country will continue to phase out overcapacity in its steel industry, which can produce 1.16 billion tons, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said last Thursday.

Domestic steel consumption shrank 3.4 percent to 738.3 million tons last year, the China Iron & Steel Association estimates. That was the first demand contraction since the 1990s, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.

Steel reinforcement-bar, used in construction and traded on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, fell 0.8 percent to 2,477 yuan ($396) a ton on Monday. Prices are down 28 percent in the last 12 months.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

Large S China Sea gas field explored

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Xinhua   Date: February 11, 2015

Over 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas has been discovered at the Lingshui 17-2 gas field in the South China Sea, China`s largest producer of offshore oil and gas announced on Monday.

The China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) said the Ministry of Land and Resource has approved Lingshui 17-2 as a large-scale gasfield.

The company`s deepwater drilling rig CNOOC 981 discovered Lingshui 17-2, the country`s first self-support deepwater gas field, in September 2014.

Located 150 km south of Hainan Island, Lingshui 17-2`s average operational depth is 1,500 meters below the sea surface, according to the CNOOC.

Xie Yuhong, a manager with CNOOC, said the approved gas reserves of Lingshui 17-2 will help the corporation build a gas trunk line to connect other gas fields in the South China Sea, so as to meet the huge gas demand of southern provinces, Hong Kong and Macao.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China to set commercial crude oil reserve inventory

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Xinhua   Date: January 29, 2015

China will set a minimum inventory level for commercial crude oil to keep the domestic oil market stable, according to the country`s top economic planner on Wednesday.

All crude oil refineries must keep their crude oil inventories above 15 days` average processing level, and no less than 10 days` deposits if international crude oil prices exceed 130 US dollars per barrel, according to a guideline issued by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

Refineries should meet the minimum inventory level within a year, while the deadline for enterprises with limited stock capacity is three years, according to the guideline.

The new rule aims to address short term crude oil shortages and brace against international market fluctuation. Commercial crude oil reserves will be held in case of natural disasters or emergencies, it said.

China`s commercial crude oil stocks were down 3.89 percent at the end of December from a month before, while stocks of refined oil products dropped 4.02 percent.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China 2014 coal output seen down 2.5 pct, first drop in a decade

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Reuters   Date: January 29, 2015

China`s coal production is estimated to have fallen 2.5 percent in 2014, the first annual drop in more than a decade, hit by a war on pollution and government efforts to tackle a supply glut as demand from industry and the power sector weakens.

The forecast by the China Coal Industry Association comes after official data showed China produced 3.52 billion tonnes of coal in the first 11 months of 2014, down 2.1 percent, with mines under pressure to cut output in the second half of the year in a bid to prop up plunging prices.

The National Bureau of Statistics has yet to publish coal production data for December or the whole year. China officially produced 3.7 billion tonnes in 2013.

Last year, Chinese power output growth was the slowest since 1998 while steel production growth was also the weakest in more than three decades, aggravating a coal supply glut.

Zheng Nan, an analyst at Shenyin Wanguo Futures in Shanghai, said falling industrial and residential demand made a 2015 recovery unlikely.

"It will remain at such a low level before 2020 given that the central government has already set the tone to curb air pollution," he said.

China`s coal data is notoriously unreliable and often fails to take into account a vast amount of illicit, private production and consumption from poorly regulated industries. However, official data suggests that the last year-on-year drop in output was in 2000.

Production has more than doubled since then, causing chronic pollution problems in industrial regions as well as a surge of greenhouse gas emissions.

A decline in 2014 output supports a view that China is close to "peak coal" use, though the International Energy Agency said earlier this month that it expected Chinese consumption to continue rising until beyond 2020.

Some experts also warned it was too soon to say whether this represented a turning point.

Yuan Jiahai, professor at the North China Electric Power University, said shrinking exports and cooler summer weather in 2014 also contributed to the decline.

Jiang Zhimin, vice-president of the China National Coal Association, told state news agency Xinhua that he expected output to fall a further 2.5 percent in 2015.

Shenyin Wanguo Securities` Zheng said any decline this year would be limited, with the state keen to preserve jobs.

The government has already tried to push production cuts to support prices and also imposed import restrictions. But efforts to support prices in 2015 could be offset by a campaign to slash consumption in more regions.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China`s December nickel ore, conc imports fall 62% on year to 2.48 million mt

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Platts   Date: January 28, 2015

China`s imports of nickel ores and concentrates fell 61.7% year on year and 13.3% month on month to 2.48 million mt in December, latest data from the General Administration of Customs showed Tuesday, January 27.

Imports from China`s largest supplier, the Philippines, rose by 73.3% year on year to 2.41 million mt in December.

But the increase was outpaced by the 100% drop in imports from Indonesia, which was China`s largest nickel ore and concentrate supplier before it banned the exports of unprocessed ore from January 2014.

Analysts expect nickel ore and concentrate imports into China to continue falling in the next few months as shipments from the Philippines are affected due to monsoons in parts of Southeast Asia.

Shipments are expected to return to normal only after March. Nickel ore inventory at China`s five major ports of Tianjin, Rizhao, Lanshan, Lianyungang and Jingtang, fell by 504,000 mt week on week to 12.45 million mt as of January 23, data from Chinese metals research firm Shanghai Metals Market showed Tuesday.

For the full year 2014, China`s nickel ore and concentrate imports fell 33% year on year to 47.72 million mt.

Imports from the Philippines during 2014 rose 23.1% from 2013 to 36.4 million mt, while those from Indonesia dropped by 74.1% year on year to 10.64 million mt last year.

In contrast, China`s imports of ferronickel increased 45.2% year on year to 282,936 mt in 2014.

Users imported the ferroalloy to substitute nickel pig iron whose production is falling in China due to drop in nickel ore imports.

In December, imports of ferronickel fell 3.6% year on year to 27,818 mt.

Meanwhile, China`s unwrought non-alloy nickel imports totaled 129,979 mt in 2014, down 22.7% year on year.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.

China`s 2014 steel output grows at slowest rate since 1981

Source: www.chinamining.org   Citation: Reuters   Date: January 21, 2015

China`s steel production grew at its slowest rate in more than three decades in 2014 as a cooling economy in the world`s largest producer curbed demand and the government moved to tackle overcapacity and pollution.

The low growth rate suggests China`s authorities have had some success in efforts to lower production and close polluting plants, but analysts warned of possible upward revisions to the 2014 data, and still forecast a small rise in output in 2015.

"We still expect a marginal growth in steel production this year as Beijing has sped up approvals of infrastructure construction projects," said Sara Wang, an analyst with Masterlink Securities in Shanghai.

Output reached a record 822.7 million tonnes - about half of forecast global production - but was up just 0.9 percent on the previous year, the slowest growth rate since 1981, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed on Tuesday.

The world`s second-largest economy grew 7.4 percent in the whole of 2014, undershooting the government`s 7.5 percent target and marking the weakest expansion in 24 years.

Steel production has doubled in just eight years, with China driving its economy through the expansion of heavy industry, but this has led to severe overcapacity and hazardous pollution problems, particularly in northern regions.

In a move to improve air quality, Beijing has taken the toughest measures ever to order steel mills to curb production, while sharp falls in steel prices and high inventories have also forced some steel mills to rein in production.

The NBS originally reported 779 million tonnes of production for 2013, but the 2014 growth figures imply an upward revision to the 2013 data of nearly 5 percent to 815.4 million tonnes, and that monthly output figures from January to November 2014 have also been revised up by more than 1 percent, according to Reuters calculations.

Analysts cautioned that a similar revision could eventually be made to the 2014 figures.

Steel output in December jumped 7.6 percent to 68.09 million tonnes in December, the highest since August, and up 1.5 percent from a year ago, the NBS data showed.

However, daily rates stood at 2.196 million tonnes for the month, compared to an annual average of 2.254 million tonnes.

Steel output in China could be approaching its peak, the China Iron & Steel Association (CISA) said last week, and it urged producers to continue slashing excess capacity and improving efficiency.

Benchmark steel rebar futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange tumbled 29 percent last year.

About CHINA MINING

Since first held in 1999, the scope and influence of CHINA MINING has grown rapidly year by year. As a global mining summit forum and exhibition, CHINA MINING Congress and Expo has become one of the world’s top mining events, and one of the world’s largest mining exploration, development and trading platforms, covering all aspects of the whole mining industry chain, including geological survey, exploration and development, mining rights trading, mining investment and financing, smelting and processing, mining techniques and equipment, mining services, etc. playing an active promotion role in creating exchange opportunities and enhancing mutual cooperation between domestic and foreign mining enterprises.

CHINA MINING Congress and Expo 2015 will be held at Meijiang Convention and Exhibition Center in Tianjin on November 20^th-23^rd, 2015. We invite you to join the event and to celebrate the 17^th anniversary of CHINA MINING with us.  For more information about CHINA MINING 2015, please visit: www.chinaminingtj.org.