Commodity demand rises, albeit temporarily

摘要

The dry bulk commodity market bustled with increased activity this month, which helped buoy the freight markets. A temporary rise in steel prices and restocking of run-down inventories that resulted from months of low imports led to a resurgence of steel-making in China. This resulted in an increase in Chinese iron ore imports. Moreover, the 120 km long traffic jam in northern China (where most domestic coal is produced) limited the coal supply in the southern part of the country (which consumes almost all of the coal produced in the country). As a result China had to increasingly rely on coal imports to fuel its power stations.