Beijing denies iron ore interference

摘要

The Chinese government has denied interfering in iron ore price negotiations, assuring Australia that delays to its spot imports in March were not part of any state-backed plan to put pressure on BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto. Following the stranding at Xingang port of three iron ore spot cargoes from Australia, Dr Geoff Raby, Australia's ambassador to China, said that there was no evidence of any "systematic" or government-backed campaign to ban Australian spot imports. Instead, he blamed import licence delays on Chinese steel industry groups seeking to influence the price talks in which BHP and Rio are pushing for higher annual prices than the massive 65-71% increase agreed by Vale of Brazil.